I have postponed the 50% tariff on Canada, which is expected to take effect tomorrow morning, for 3 days, based on the agreement between Canada and the US, depending on the completion of the documents," Mr. Trump wrote on social media on August 18 (US time).
The US President did not provide further details, except for mentioning the Keystone XL oil pipeline that he said "can be awakened from the grave".
According to the US Trade Representative Office, the 50% tariff should have affected imports from Canada worth about $20 billion, covering items ranging from hockey sticks, some building materials, spirits to several types of clothing.
The last-minute agreement came after more than a week of intense meetings and technical negotiations. Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney described the negotiations with the US administration as "very sensitive and tense", but did not elaborate. The two leaders had phone conversations twice during this period, Mr. Carney's office said.
The Canadian Prime Minister previously affirmed that the threatened tariffs are "direct violations" of the US-Canada-Mexico Agreement, the main document Mr. Trump pursued and signed during his first term.
The US Chamber of Commerce warned that if no agreement is reached, the imposition of higher tariffs will harm both economies, push costs up to US families, disrupt more essential supply chains and threaten 13 million jobs of Americans dependent on the North American trade agreement. The organization assessed that reducing tariffs on Canada would be a "great benefit for US consumers, producers, farmers and manufacturers".
