Canada
August 22, 2026
BREAKING NEWS: US-Canada trade talks collapse
Written by Michael Cowden
Trade talks between the US and Canada collapsed late on Friday, just hours after media reports that an accord was near.
The failure of the two countries to reach a deal means the US will impose 50% tariffs on a range of Canadian goods under Section 338 of the Tariff Act of 1930.
Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney said in a statement late on Friday that Canada would retaliate with its own countermeasures. “Canada will match those tariffs dollar for dollar to protect our workers and businesses,” he said.
Carney said he decided to suspend trade talks with the US because Washington’s “last-minute changes” to the proposed deal were “unfair, uneconomic, and called into question the reliability of any deal.”
US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer blamed Canada for talks collapsing.
“Tonight, Canada declined to finalize the trade deal under the terms agreed earlier this week, despite the US offer to Canada to receive the best treatment of any major exporter to our market,” the New York Times quoted him as saying in a virtual press conference.
The failed talks cast doubt on any reduction in Section 232 tariffs on Canadian steel, aluminum, and automobiles. Reports earlier in the week indicated that Section 232 tariffs of 50% on steel and aluminum might be cut in half and automotive tariffs substantially reduced as part of a broader trade deal covering not only metals but also lumber, liquor, dairy, and other goods.
