Trump announces 50% tariffs on Canadian steel and aluminium
Newflash: Donald Trump has doubled the tariff he is imposing on Canadian steel and aluminium imports to the US, to 50%.
In a shock move that has jolted markets, the US president says he is doubling the tariff, which had previously been inked in at 25%, in retaliation for Ontario adding a 25% surcharge on electricity it sends to US states (which was in retaliation to earlier Trump tariffs).
The new tariffs will come in tomorrow – when the US was already expected to bring in 25% tariffs on steel and aluminium imports from other countries.
Posting on his Truth Social site, Trump says:
Based on Ontario, Canada, placing a 25% Tariff on “Electricity” coming into the United States, I have instructed my Secretary of Commerce to ad [sic] an ADDITIONAL 25% Tariff, to 50%, on all STEEL and ALUMINUM COMING INTO THE UNITED STATES FROM CANADA, ONE OF THE HIGHEST TARIFFING NATIONS ANYWHERE IN THE WORLD. This will go into effect TOMORROW MORNING, March 12th.
Also, Canada must immediately drop their Anti-American Farmer Tariff of 250% to 390% on various U.S. dairy products, which has long been considered outrageous.
Trump also reveals that he will soon declare “a National Emergency on Electricity within the threatened area”, to allow the US to quicly act and “alleviate this abusive threat from Canada”.
Trump also threatens higher tariffs on Canadian car imports, saying:
If other egregious, long time Tariffs are not likewise dropped by Canada, I will substantially increase, on April 2nd, the Tariffs on Cars coming into the U.S. which will, essentially, permanently shut down the automobile manufacturing business in Canada. Those cars can easily be made in the USA!
Trump rounds off his post by talking about making Canada “our cherished Fifty First State” – something the next Canadian prime minister, Mark Carney, has insisted will never happen.
Key events
Tariffs risk creating a triple whammy of inflation, growth and dented confidence, wans Gerard Lyons, chief economic strategist at Netwealth.
Lyons explains:
“When Trump was elected it was clear that his economic policies contained the good, the bad and the uncertain. The markets initially focused on the good – in terms of his tax and regulatory changes for the US economy. Now the focus is on the bad – namely tariffs.
The uncertainty around the execution of these adds to the uncertainty. Tariffs can have a triple whammy, adding to worries about inflation, growth and denting confidence.”
Starmer to avoid immediate counter-tariffs if Trump puts levies on UK steel
Julia Kollewe
Keir Starmer has said he will not hit back with immediate counter-tariffs if Donald Trump imposes 25% levies on all steel and aluminium imports to the US on Wednesday.
The prime minister discussed the issue with Trump in a phone call on Monday and is prepared for the tariffs to be imposed at 4am UK time on 12 March.
Summers: tthis is the worst trade policy yet
Former US Teasury secretary Larry Summers has condemned Donald Trump’s decision to impose 50% tariffs on Canadian steel and aluminium imports.
Writing on X, Summers says:
The just announced tariffs on Canadian steel and aluminum are the worst trade policy yet. Increasing the price of key inputs for the US manufacturing industries–who employ 10 million people–is what a U.S. adversary would do.
It is a self-inflicted wound to the U.S. economy that we cannot afford, at a moment when recession risks are rising.
The just announced tariffs on Canadian steel and aluminum are the worst trade policy yet. Increasing the price of key inputs for the US manufacturing industries–who employ 10 million people–is what a U.S. adversary would do.
It is a self-inflicted wound to the U.S. economy…
— Lawrence H. Summers (@LHSummers) March 11, 2025
Yesterday, Summers warned that the chances of a US recession this year are “getting close to 50/50” due to conterproductive economic policies.
Aluminium prices jump
Price premiums for aluminium on the physical market in the United States have soared to a record high above $990 a metric ton, Reuters reports.
That’s a rapid reaction to Trump’s plan to double planned tariffs on Canadian metal to 50% tomorrow.
Trump’s reactionary trade policies have thwarted hopes of market recovery today, says Kathleen Brooks, research director at XTB:
Hopes for a broad-based market recovery on Tuesday have been dashed. US markets had a mixed open, the S&P 500 and the Dow Jones faltered when markets opened, while the Nasdaq initially rallied, led by some tech stocks including Tesla, Netflix and Meta.
However, news that President Trump has slapped a further 25% tariff on steel and aluminum imports from Canada has sapped market confidence. Tariffs on these imports are now at 50% and are seemingly in retaliation for Ontario’s decision to impose a 25% tariff on electricity exports to the US.
Doug Ford, the premier of Ontario who has angered Donald Trump by imposing tariffs on electricity exports to the US, is refusing to yield.
Ford says he, and Canada, will not back down until Trump’s tariffs on Canadian imports “are gone for good”.
Shares in US automakers are falling.
Ford Motor’s shares are down 3.5%, while General Motors have dropped by 4%.
Traders are calculating that high metal tariffs is going to drive up costs for the American industrial sector, eating into their profits.
Canadian dollar weakens
Canada’s currency has been knocked by Trump’s decision to hit the country’s steel and aluminium with 50% tariffs.
The ‘loonie’, as the Canadian dollar is known, has dropped to 1.4508 to the US dollar, down from 1.4435 last night – a day before the Bank of Canada is expected to cut interest rates.
Kyle Chapman, FX markets analyst at Ballinger Group, says:
“Mark Carney is getting quite the introduction to the PM role in a Trump world. USD/CAD has surged after Trump has just announced on social media that he will increase steel and aluminum tariffs to 50% and declare a ‘national emergency on electricity’, until Canada removes its trade barriers on dairy and electricity.
The tariff rollercoaster just does not stop for the Loonie. Whether these tariffs go into effect, and if they do, how long they persist before the next delay, is totally beyond predictability. What we can be certain about either way, however, is that Canada is going to suffer. I’d argue that the Canadian economy doesn’t even need the tariffs to weaken; the unrelenting uncertainty is enough.
Ordinarily this would be the time for policymakers to step back and assess the outlook, but the Bank of Canada cannot justify anything other than a rate cut tomorrow, even if only for a bit of insurance.
Shares in American metal-makers are rallying.
US Steel are up 2.2%, while Steel Dynamics have risen 1.8%.
US industrial corporation Alcoa Corporation, one of the world’s largest producers of aluminium, are up 1.3%, and Century Aluminum have jumped over 7%.
Traders will be calculating that punishingly steep new tariffs on Canadian metals imports will lead to higher sales for US producers, especially as all steel and aluminium imports are expected to incur 25% tariffs from tomorrow morning.
It could also allow American firms to raise their own prices, boosting profit margins, and still remain more competitive than imported rival goods.
Stocks in London are deeper in the red, after Trump’s decision to whack 50% tariffs on Canadian steel and aluminium.
The FTSE 100 index has lost just over 1%, or 90 points, to 8,507 points, its lowest level since 27 January, as investors fret about a global trade war hurting economic growth.
Markets slide after Trump’s steel tariff bombshell
Wall Street’s early recovery has been wiped out by Donald Trump’s decision to double the tariff on Canadian steel and aluminium, to 50%.
The S&P 500 index has sunk by 0.6%, or 33 points, to 5,581 points.
The much-storied Dow Jones industrial average, which contains 30 large US companies, has slumped by 1%.
After the worst day of 2025 (so far) on Wall Street yesterday, there’s little respite for investors today.
Trump announces 50% tariffs on Canadian steel and aluminium
Newflash: Donald Trump has doubled the tariff he is imposing on Canadian steel and aluminium imports to the US, to 50%.
In a shock move that has jolted markets, the US president says he is doubling the tariff, which had previously been inked in at 25%, in retaliation for Ontario adding a 25% surcharge on electricity it sends to US states (which was in retaliation to earlier Trump tariffs).
The new tariffs will come in tomorrow – when the US was already expected to bring in 25% tariffs on steel and aluminium imports from other countries.
Posting on his Truth Social site, Trump says:
Based on Ontario, Canada, placing a 25% Tariff on “Electricity” coming into the United States, I have instructed my Secretary of Commerce to ad [sic] an ADDITIONAL 25% Tariff, to 50%, on all STEEL and ALUMINUM COMING INTO THE UNITED STATES FROM CANADA, ONE OF THE HIGHEST TARIFFING NATIONS ANYWHERE IN THE WORLD. This will go into effect TOMORROW MORNING, March 12th.
Also, Canada must immediately drop their Anti-American Farmer Tariff of 250% to 390% on various U.S. dairy products, which has long been considered outrageous.
Trump also reveals that he will soon declare “a National Emergency on Electricity within the threatened area”, to allow the US to quicly act and “alleviate this abusive threat from Canada”.
Trump also threatens higher tariffs on Canadian car imports, saying:
If other egregious, long time Tariffs are not likewise dropped by Canada, I will substantially increase, on April 2nd, the Tariffs on Cars coming into the U.S. which will, essentially, permanently shut down the automobile manufacturing business in Canada. Those cars can easily be made in the USA!
Trump rounds off his post by talking about making Canada “our cherished Fifty First State” – something the next Canadian prime minister, Mark Carney, has insisted will never happen.
Just in: There were more job vacancies at US companies than expected last month.
The number of job openings was little changed in February at 7.7 million in January, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics has reported.
That’s a little higher than the 7.6m which had been expected.
Stocks have fallen more sharply in London too.
The FTSE 100 index is now down 71 points, or 0.8%, at 8528 points, its lowest level since 4 February.
European stocks are heading south – the Stoxx 600 index, which tracks stocks across the region, is now down 1% at its lowest since 6 February.
Wall Street opens lower amid slowdown worries
Wall Street has opened gingerly, after its worst day of the year yesterday.
Stocks are mixed… the Dow Jones industrial average has dropped by 68 points, or 0.15%, at the start of trading to 41,843 points.
The broader S&P 500 index has slipped by 0.18%, while the tech-focused Nasdaq was down just 0.1% in early trading, as investors continue to ponder the risks of a US recession soon.
David Morrison, senior market analyst at fintech and financial services provider Trade Nation, says:
Yesterday’s stock market sell-off followed on from last week’s negative performance. Yet little has really changed. Non-Farm Payrolls were fine, and most economic data points are holding up. Retail Sales were weak, and confidence indicators are a concern.
But for now, the sell-off looks like an overdue correction which could reset some overvalued stocks and restore some sanity to the market. That’s not to say there aren’t dangers. But it could also prove to be a short-term opportunity should investors now broaden out their portfolios by including some of the overlooked S&P constituents, having reduced their ‘Mag Seven’ exposure.
As far as potential catalysts for the next move, today sees the latest update on JOLTS Job Openings, with CPI tomorrow and PPI on Thursday. Aside from that, President Trump’s tariff threats rumble on, and should continue to influence sentiment
