Trump had been threatening the tariffs to ensure greater cooperation from the countries on stopping illegal immigration and the smuggling of chemicals used for fentanyl, but he has also pledged to use tariffs to boost domestic manufacturing and raise revenues for the federal government.
“Starting tomorrow, those tariffs will be in place,” White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt told reporters. “These are promises made and promises kept by the president.”
Trump had said he was weighing issuing an exemption for Canadian and Mexican oil imports, but Leavitt said she had no information to share on the president's decision on any potential carveouts.
The United States imported almost 4.6 million barrels of oil daily from Canada in October and 563,000 barrels from Mexico, according to the Energy Information Administration. U.S. daily production during that month averaged nearly 13.5 million barrels a day.
Trump has previously stated a 10% tariff on Chinese imports would be on top of other import taxes charged on products from the country.
Both Canada and Mexico have said they’ve prepared the option of retaliatory tariffs to be used if necessary, which in turn could trigger a wider trade conflict that economic analyses say could hurt growth and further accelerate inflation.
Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said Friday that Canada is ready is a respond if Trump goes ahead with the tariffs, but he did not give details.
