Trump says he will raise tariffs on Canada by 10% after Reagan Ontario ad

President Donald Trump said Saturday he would increase tariffs on Canada by 10% from current levels, escalating trade tensions over what he called “fakeAdvertisement that featured excerpts from an anti-tariff speech given by former President Ronald Reagan in 1987.

“Canada was caught red-handed releasing a fraudulent ad about Ronald Reagan’s speech on tariffs,” Trump posted on Social truthadding: “Due to their serious misrepresentation of facts and hostile act, I am increasing tariffs on Canada by 10% beyond what they currently pay. »

The president’s post comes after he announced Thursday that he was ending trade talks with Canada, once again threatening to upend crucial economic relations between the United States and its second-largest trading partner. New tariff is Trump’s latest salvo in his global trade agenda after imposing a levy of 100% “on top of” any tariffs imposed on China in retaliation for new export controls imposed by Beijing on rare earth minerals earlier this month.

Trump posted about the tariff while aboard Air Force One as he heads to Asia for a five-day trip starting in Malaysia, where he will meet with Southeast Asian leaders. He is expected to meet Chinese leader Xi Jinping at the end of his trip to South Korea.

The Canadian commercial, purchased by the Ontario government and broadcast on major American television networks, featured excerpts from a speech in which Reagan spoke out against tariffs. The ad quoted Reagan, who said the tariffs harmed “all American workers and consumers” and “triggered fierce trade wars.”

The Ronald Reagan Presidential Foundation & Institute said the ad misrepresented the former president’s comments.

Ontario Premier Doug Ford said Friday that he had spoken with Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney and that the U.S. ad campaign would stop on Monday “so that trade negotiations can resume.”

But the ad would continue to air over the weekend during the World Series, which pits the Los Angeles Dodgers against the Toronto Blue Jays, Canada’s only Major League Baseball team.

“Their ad was supposed to be taken down IMMEDIATELY, but they let it circulate last night during the World Series knowing it was FRAUD,” Trump said Saturday.

Ford’s spokesperson referred CNN to the prime minister’s statement Friday in which he said advertising would be suspended on Monday. CNN has reached out to Carney’s office for comment.

“Tariffs, at any level, remain a tax on America first and then on North American competitiveness as a whole. We hope that this threat of escalation can be resolved through diplomacy and further negotiations. CUSMA means a North America where businesses do better. A successful free trade zone is fundamental to both our economies,” said Candace Laing, President and CEO of the Canadian Chamber of Commerce, in an email to CNN.

Canada has long been one of the United States’ top trading partners, behind China and Mexico, making trade tensions a hot topic. Last year, the United States imported $411.9 billion worth of goods of Canada.

Trump’s high sectoral tariffs on automobiles, steel, aluminum, lumber and energy – some of the country’s top exports to the United States – have hit Canada particularly hard. The unemployment rate in Canada is now at its highest climax in nine years.

It also hurts the US economy due to Canadian boycott. According to Statistics Canada data, land travel by Canadians to the United States was down 31% this year through the end of September. Exports of American spirits to Canada plunged by 85% in the second quarter, according to the Distilled Spirits Council of the United States.

But products compliant with the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement, or USMCA, which Trump negotiated during his first term, have mostly been able to enter the United States duty-free. Trump’s repeated tariff threats have many expecting major changes to the USMCA when it takes effect. revised next year.