Ottawa, Canada - Canada will hit back at US tariffs with 25 percent levies of its own on select American goods, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said Saturday.
"Canada will be responding to the US trade action with 25 percent tariffs against Can$155 billion ($106 million) worth of American goods," he said in a dramatic tone as he warned of a fracture in longstanding Canada-US ties.
The first round of tariffs would target Can$30 billion worth of US goods on Tuesday followed by further tariffs on Can$125 billion worth of products in three weeks.
US President Donald Trump announced broad tariffs Saturday on major US trading partners Canada, Mexico and China, citing a "major threat" from illegal immigration and drugs -- a move that sparked promises of retaliation.
Canadian and Mexican exports to the United States will face a 25 percent tariff starting Tuesday, although energy resources from Canada will have a lower 10 percent levy.
Goods from China, which already face various rates of duties, will see an additional 10 percent tariff, said Trump.
The announcement threatens upheaval across supply chains, from energy to automobiles to food.
Trump invoked the International Emergency Economic Powers Act in imposing the tariffs, with the White House saying "the extraordinary threat posed by illegal aliens and drugs, including deadly fentanyl, constitutes a national emergency."
The aim is to hold all three countries "accountable to their promises of halting illegal immigration and stopping poisonous fentanyl and other drugs from flowing into our country," the White House added.
