Trump escalates trade war with Canada, moving to ban the import of some autos, dairy and alcohol

Tuesday’s announcement comes as the U.S.-Canadian relationship severely deteriorates. The White House said the import bans will go into effect in about three weeks.

President Donald Trump on Tuesday moved to sharply escalate the trade war with Canada, seeking to block the import of some autos, dairy products and alcohol.

In a call with reporters, senior Trump administration officials said that the move was in direct response to Canada’s latest retaliatory tariffs. Those duties took effect at 12:01 a.m. Tuesday.

The ban on the importation of Canadian alcohol in particular closely mirrors bans that provinces across Canada put in place in early 2025 on American alcohol. Those were imposed after Trump introduced sweeping duties on America’s longtime northern ally.

The measures announced Tuesday were signed into law under Section 338 of the Tariff Act of 1930, documents posted to the White House show. That trade law was never used until Trump implemented new tariffs on Canada under the statute in late August.

Other products banned from import include Canadian motorcycles.

A Trump administration official, speaking on the call with reporters, said the White House also completed “housekeeping” on tariffs already in place. Tariffs on cement, road salt and hospital pads were removed and replaced with duties on all-terrain vehicles, some cheeses and motor boats.

The import bans will go into effect in about three weeks — Sept. 29.

On Tuesday’s call, a White House official also said Trump’s plan for 50% duties on cars and trucks remains on the table. The president recently threatened to impose those on January 1.

Tuesday’s announcement comes as the U.S.-Canadian relationship severely deteriorates. For nearly a year, U.S. officials have taken issue with Canada’s retaliatory tariffs.

“I’ve got two countries in the world that have retaliated against the United States for trade measures: the People’s Republic of China and Canada,” U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer said in August. “That’s not the kind of company you really want to be running in.”

Days later, Canada’s Prime Minister Mark Carney pulled the plug on negotiations with the U.S., citing “uneconomic” and “unfair” demands from American officials at the last minute. Trump administration officials have disputed that.

After the collapse of those negotiations, Trump moved to rename Lake Ontario as “Lake America.” Canadian officials have said they will ignore Trump’s renaming.

“We’ll always call it Lake Ontario. Period,” Canada’s Minister of Industry Mélanie Joly said on August 27. “While all these shenanigans are happening, we’ll just be smart, and we’ll be strategic, and we’ll fight back.”

On Monday, Trump ratcheted up pressure on Canada once again, threatening Canadian jet maker Bombardier. Trump, on Truth Social, wrote that the company should no longer be able to sell its products in the U.S.

Bombardier quickly pointed out that it supports thousands of U.S. jobs throughout its supply chain. White House officials said Tuesday night that Trump was still reviewing options with how to implement that idea.

Monday was also when Canada’s latest swath of retaliatory duties took effect, hitting hundreds of products, including steel, dairy, household appliances, farm equipment, paper, and electronics with duties of between 15% and 50%.

For Carney, Canada will not be returning to the negotiating table any time soon.

“When the Americans stop doing memes, stop throwing shade, stop trying to be tough and start being serious about having those discussions, we can have those discussions,” Carney said last week.

Since Carney terminated trade talks on Aug. 21, top officials such as Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent have mocked Canada and its economy. Trump has also posted numerous AI memes on social media about Canada, and the White House’s official X accountposted an image of a bald eagle stepping on what appears to be a Canadian goose.

On Sunday, Bessent likened Canada to “a little yippy dog” in an interview with Fox News Channel.

Carney remained steadfast Tuesday, even as he said that the Trump administration was trying to “break” Canada with tariffs.

“With a resilient economy and the strongest fiscal position in the G-7, we have everything we need to pivot and prosper,” Carney said in a YouTube video.

As trade talks with Canada remain on ice, Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick is set to travel to Mexico on Wednesday, according to Mexico’s trade minister. In a post on X, Economy Minister Marcelo Ebrard said Lutnick would meet with Mexico’s President Claudia Sheinbaum to discuss the two countries’ trading relationship.

Alexandra Bacallao and Brittany Kubicko contributed.