One day after the economic strike against the two biggest trading partners in the US, Donald Trump temporarily spared US tariffs on goods from Canada and Mexico, causing widespread price increases and warnings of suspension.
The US president extended his aggressive trade strategy late Tuesday night by targeting two closest neighbors of the country with a 25% position.
The US retail giant predicted prices would likely rise in stores almost immediately, and raised questions about Trump’s promise to “make America affordable again” after years of inflation.
However, after calling with top executives from General Motors, Ford and Stellantis, Trump approved a one-month exemption from the US, Mexico and Canada, “all cars coming” tariffs.
The exemption is granted “at the request of the company,” Leavitt told reporters “they are not financially disadvantaged.”
Trump has argued that tariffs will involve U.S. industry by forcing global companies to build factories in the US, but Ford CEO Jim Farley publicly warned last month that imposing sudden tariffs on Canada and Mexico could “blow a hole” in the country’s automotive industry.
However, another call between Canadian Prime Ministers Trump and Justin Trudeau didn’t lead to a bigger breakthrough. Trudeau “has caused problems with them primarily because of his weak border policies,” Trump declared on his true social platform after they spoke. “These policies are responsible for the deaths of many people!”
Trudeau claimed there had been improvements at the border, the US president added that he told him this was “not enough.”
In a joint speech to Trump’s Congress on Tuesday evening, he acknowledged that tariffs would cause confusion. “There’s a bit of a hindrance, but that’s fine,” he said.
He condemned the cost-of-living challenges of his predecessor, Joe Biden, and claimed that he inherited “the nightmare of economic catastrophe and inflation.”
In fact, the US economy has remained resilient in recent years, with inflation dropping dramatically from its peak at its highest level in a generation three years ago.
“One of my top priorities is to save our economy and be dramatically and instantly saved by working families,” Trump said. “As president, I fight every day to overturn this damage and make America affordable again.”
Trump spoke with Trudeau on Wednesday. “You’re a very smart person, but this is very stupid,” Trudeau told Trump this week after the US imposed tariffs.
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Trump initially had promised to target Canada and Mexico and target tariffs on his first day in office. However, upon his return, he said he was considering imposing tariffs at the beginning of February. Last month he provided Canada and Mexico with a one-month delay in the 11th hour.
Trump and his allies argue that higher tariffs on US imports from around the world will help “make America great again” by allowing them to gain political and economic concessions from allies and rivals at the global stage.
But businesses both within the US and around the world are warning of widespread disruption if the Trump administration pushes this strategy.
Since winning the November presidential election, the president has focused on China, Canada and Mexico, threatening three markets of exports, unless it reduces the “unacceptable” level of illegal drugs going to the US.
