Trump waives tariffs on Mexico, not Canada, for 1 month on most products

U.S. President Donald Trump said Thursday he will temporarily waive tariffs on products from Mexico that fall under the North American free trade agreement, two days after launching a continental trade war.

The announcement did not mention Canada, which is also facing sweeping tariffs on all goods entering the U.S. It came shortly after Trump levelled new attacks against Prime Minister Justin Trudeau following a heated exchange Wednesday.

“After speaking with President Claudia Sheinbaum of Mexico, I have agreed that Mexico will not be required to pay Tariffs on anything that falls under the USMCA Agreement,” Trump wrote on Truth Social following a scheduled call between the two leaders.

“This Agreement is until April 2nd. I did this as an accommodation, and out of respect for, President Sheinbaum.”

The post cited the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) that Trump negotiated with the two countries during his first term in 2018, which is referred to as CUSMA in Canada.

Most products traded between Mexico, Canada and the U.S. fall under CUSMA rules.

Trump said he and Sheinbaum were “working hard, together” on border security concerns, including fentanyl, that Trump has frequently cited for the 25 per cent tariffs on Mexico and Canada that came into effect on Tuesday, along with 10 per cent levies on Canadian energy.

The Trump administration has accused Canada of not doing enough to address those same border security issues, despite a total $1.5 billion of investments from the federal government, the appointment of a fentanyl czar and data showing fentanyl seizures at the Canada-U.S. border have continued to fall from record highs last year.

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Trudeau and Trump discussed the fentanyl issue during a nearly hour-long phone call Wednesday, which the prime minister described to reporters Thursday as “colourful.”

“I can confirm that we will continue to be in a trade war that was launched by the United States for the foreseeable future,” he said.

Trump’s announcement comes after his Commerce Secretary, Howard Lutnick, told CNBC that tariffs on both Canada and Mexico would “likely” be delayed. But Trump did not mention Canada in his announcement.

Hours earlier, he accused Trudeau of “using the Tariff problem, which he has largely caused, in order to run again for Prime Minister.” Trudeau is set to resign after a new Liberal leader is voted on by the party on Sunday.

Thursday marked the second time this week that Trump has announced an exemption to the Canada and Mexico tariffs.

On Wednesday, the White House said tariffs would be paused on the Big Three automakers Stellantis, General Motors and Ford — which operate North American production lines — until April 2.

That’s when what Trump calls “reciprocal” tariffs will take effect to seek to match all tariffs and trade measures imposed by other countries.

More to come…