President Trump’s tariff strategy delivered swift victory Tuesday, forcing Ontario to back down from its planned 25 percent surcharge on electricity exports to the United States, even as the administration moved ahead with imposing its 25 percent tariffs on steel and aluminum imports from Canada.
Ontario Premier Doug Ford announced late Tuesday that the province would suspend its electricity levy after discussions with U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, signaling a clear diplomatic win for Trump. The Ontario surcharge had been set as retaliation against earlier tariffs imposed by Trump.
“I’m not out to hurt the American people,” Ford told reporters in Toronto, according to the Wall Street Journal. “Sometimes you have to play your cards, and this is one of the cards we played, and hopefully we’re going to have a very good constructive conversation.”
The agreement comes after a day of intense trade tensions and underscores Trump’s ability to leverage tariff threats to achieve economic and diplomatic goals. Canada remains America’s top supplier of foreign steel and aluminum, highlighting the significance of Trump’s latest tariffs.
Despite intense lobbying by U.S. companies and foreign governments for exemptions or carve-outs—similar to those granted during Trump’s first administration—the White House insisted Tuesday that no exceptions or carve-outs would be granted.
“Pursuant to his previous executive orders, a 25% tariff on steel and aluminum with no exceptions or exemptions will go into effect for Canada and all of our other trading partners at midnight, March 12th,” White House spokesperson Kush Desai said in a statement.
Trump had earlier warned of even harsher measures against Canada, including tariffs on automobile parts, if Ottawa continued its retaliation against U.S. trade actions. On Truth Social Tuesday, Trump bluntly threatened to “substantially increase” levies on Canadian auto imports, claiming it would “permanently shut down the automobile manufacturing business in Canada” and suggesting cars could be produced domestically instead.
Canadian Prime Minister-designate Mark Carney, set to replace outgoing and unpopular Justin Trudeau, called Trump’s actions an attack on Canadian households but faces the daunting challenge of managing the trade relationship under Trump’s firm tariff stance.
Ford and Lutnick are scheduled to meet in Washington on Thursday, potentially paving the way for broader negotiations aimed at updating the U.S.-Mexico-Canada trade pact ahead of an April 2 deadline set by Trump for reciprocal tariffs.
Tuesday’s developments reaffirmed Trump’s willingness to deploy tariffs as negotiating tools, delivering concrete results by compelling trading partners to reconsider retaliatory actions against the U.S.
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