What do orange juice from Florida; bourbon from Kentucky; potatoes from Idaho; Coca-Cola from Georgia; and automobiles from Alabama and South Carolina have in common? These red state goods may be on a potential list of imports slated for tariffs in Canada.
Incoming President Donald Trump has threatened Canada with a 25% tariff on items it exports to the United States.
“The Americans would be starting a trade war against us,” Canadian Foreign Affairs Minister Melanie Joly said on Friday.
Approximately 3-in-4 Canadian exports land in the United States. Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and Canadian officials have developed a three-phase response to the threat.
First, Canadian leaders will continue to work with U.S. officials to attempt to prevent tariffs. Canada has already pledged a “$1.3-billion border security plan,” for example.
Second, Canadian leaders are preparing a tariff response should Trump go through with his threat. For example, Canada might establish tariffs on consumer goods “made in Republican or swing states, where the pain of tariffs, like pressure on jobs and the bottom lines of local businesses, would affect Trump allies.”
Canada imports U.S. goods valued at $150,000,000,000 Canadian.
The detailed list of goods is closely held, but it includes dozens of consumer goods from various categories, such as food and beverages, as well as other types of daily products, including dishwashers and porcelain goods like bathtubs and toilets.
Other nations threatened with U.S. tariffs should take the same targeted approach in response. You cannot expect those countries to sit quietly while the U.S. imposes tariffs. That’s not how trade agreements work.
The third is a long-term effort: “diversify Canada’s export market and [ensure] there are no trade barriers across the country.”
Should Trump proceed, the results will be disastrous.
According to Sunday’s WSJ, for at least the next two years both inflation and interest rates are likely to be worse than forecasters anticipated before the election. Does that mean forecasters didn’t take Trump’s rhetoric seriously? Because he’s been planning this for months.
Known for gnawing at complex questions like a terrier with a bone. Digital evangelist, writer, teacher. Transplanted Southerner; teach newbies to ride motorcycles. @kegill (Twitter and Mastodon.social); wiredpen.com