Canadian consumers and businesses are bracing for the Aug. 19 deadline that U.S. President Donald Trump has set to impose 50% tariffs on a range of goods and services from Canada.
Trump is threatening to impose 50% tariffs on nearly $20 billion U.S. of Canadian goods ranging from dairy products to clothing items effective Aug. 19 unless a new trade deal can be reached.
Unlike Trump’s previous tariffs, the new duties would not exempt goods that comply with the Canada-U.S.-Mexico free trade agreement.
Canadian government officials have been in Washington, D.C. over the past week meeting with their U.S. counterparts and trying to hammer out a new trade deal that will avert the tariffs.
With no deal announced, tensions are running high between the two countries as consumers and business wait to see if the 50% duties will be applied by the Trump administration.
However, informal polls suggest that Canadian businesses are taking a wait-and-see approach to the Aug.19 tariff deadline rather than trying to rush shipments over the border to the U.S.
Political pundits say there is little evidence that Canadian businesses are front-loading their shipments and are instead engaging in watchful waiting.
Some analysts on Wall Street predict that Trump will back down on his tariff threat right before the deadline, a trend referred to by investors as “TACO,” or “Trump Always Chickens Out.”
The Aug. 19 tariff deadline approaches with Canada’s benchmark Toronto Stock Exchange hitting all-time highs as crude oil prices march higher due to Trump’s ongoing war with Iran.
The S&P/TSX Composite Index reached a new all-time intraday high of 36,763.81 and closed at a record 36,759.29 on Aug. 13.
