OTTAWA, Canada — 23 August 2026, Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney said Canada will impose retaliatory tariffs on a range of US goods after President Donald Trump introduced 50% tariffs on Canadian products, following the collapse of trade negotiations between the two neighbouring countries.
Carney said on Saturday that Washington’s latest tariff measures were a “miscalculation” designed to hurt and divide Canada, after intensive negotiations broke down late on Friday, 21 August.
“They asked for too much and offered too little,” Carney told Canadians on Saturday morning.
Asked whether Canada was now in a trade war with the United States, Carney said the country was under attack.
“You’re at war when you get attacked. We got attacked,” he said.
Carney said Canada would respond “dollar for dollar”, imposing tariffs equal in value to those levied by Washington in an effort to protect Canadian workers, farmers, families, and businesses.
The Canadian measures will take effect on 8 September and target US products including steel, dairy products, appliances, agricultural equipment, pulp and paper, and electronics. The government is expected to announce further details in the coming days.
“In recent days, the US proposed new terms that were uneconomic, unfair, and undermined the net benefits to Canada, calling into question the reliability of any deal,” Carney said.
He said the US demands included restrictions on Canada’s ability to negotiate new trade agreements with other countries.
“We cannot accept what they have offered, and we will not give what they have asked,” he said.
Carney also said Ottawa would announce support measures next week for Canadian industries affected by the new US tariffs, adding that some assistance could remain in place for years.
The collapse of negotiations marks a further deterioration in one of the world’s most deeply integrated trading relationships, with no clear path towards resolving the dispute.
Trump’s new 50% tariffs apply to about US$20 billion worth of Canadian exports, or roughly 5% of Canada’s exports to the US. Products affected include wine, furniture, dairy products, cement, clothing, fishing rods, and hockey equipment.
Some Canadian goods that had previously received tariff protection under the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement, or USMCA, are also affected by the new measures, further complicating the future of the three-country trade pact.
Both Washington and Ottawa blamed the other side for the failure of three days of intensive negotiations.
Carney is among a relatively small number of world leaders who have chosen to retaliate against Trump’s tariffs. He has also pledged to deepen Canada’s trade and security partnerships with other countries as Ottawa seeks to reduce its reliance on the United States, which accounts for nearly 70% of Canadian exports.
US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer described the breakdown as a “missed opportunity for Canada to partner with the United States” and said there were currently no plans to restart negotiations.
“We’re moving forward with measures that respond to Canadian retaliation,” Greer told Fox News. “They’ve always had the best deal, and they still would have an even better deal, but they didn’t want that.”
Canadian political leaders, including members of the opposition Conservative Party and several provincial premiers, backed Carney’s response.
Conservative leader Pierre Poilievre said Canadians must stand together to defend the country against what he described as unfair US measures affecting Canadian jobs and businesses.