Trump Ramps Up Canada Tariffs Threat. Latest Trade Updates.

President Donald Trump published a letter to Canada on tariffs on social media Thursday. (Getty Images)

President Donald Trump says Canadian goods will face a 35% tariff, though the scope of the new levy would be limited.

In a letter to Canada’s Prime Minister Mark Carney posted on Trump’s Truth Social website, the president said the blanket 35% would be on top of tariffs on certain sectors. That’s higher than the previous 25% rate.

Trump added that any attempts to evade the tariffs through transshipments—sending the goods through third countries—would trigger even higher tariffs. Any retaliation of Canada raising its tariffs on the U.S. would also lead to higher taxes on exports to the U.S.

There’s a big caveat to the measures, though. Goods that already fall under the free-trade agreement between the two nations will be exempt. Carney said on the social-media site X that he’s still working on clinching a new agreement with the U.S. by Aug. 1. Trump cited tariffs against U.S. dairy products and the fentanyl trade as reasons for the high tax on goods from the neighbor to the north.

The move against Canada is the latest salvo in a busy week for Trump’s tariffs agenda. The president has informed about 20 countries what their new tax rates would be if no alternative arrangements were reached by the end of the month. Most are roughly in line with what was announced in April. One exception is Brazil, which faces a 50% rate because of Trump’s objection to the trial of the country’s former leader.

Trump said countries that hadn’t received letters would probably be facing 15%-20% tariffs, a higher rate than the current blanket tariffs on goods. He made the remarks in an interview with NBC News that came out late Thursday.

Another key takeaway from this week is new, high tariffs on copper and pharmaceuticals, which Trump says will encourage those industries to grow domestically. That’s pushed up copper prices and raised concerns about a competitive disadvantage it would create for U.S. industry.

Write to Brian Swint at brian.swint@barrons.com