Canadian Prime Minister Carney issued a statement on the 21st, announcing the immediate suspension of trade negotiations with the United States and the recall of the Canadian negotiating delegation.
The statement said that the United States intends to impose a 50% tariff on $20 billion (about 80.766 billion ringgit) worth of Canadian goods starting at midnight on the 21st local time. To protect domestic businesses and workers, Canada will implement reciprocal counter-tariffs against the US.
Carney stated that the last-minute amendments proposed by the US side were “unfair and economically illogical,” leading to the failure to reach a deal that meets Canada’s objectives. The Canadian government will introduce more measures in the coming days to address the impact of the US tariffs.
According to a Reuters report quoting a US government official, during the negotiations, Canada sought tariff exemptions in more areas, but the US was unwilling to concede.