Trump pauses tariffs on most nations for 90 days, raises taxes on Chinese imports

U.S. President Donald Trump says he is immediately pausing tariffs on most nations for 90 days — but it’s not immediately clear what the impact will be for Canada.

White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt told reporters at the White House that the decision amounts to a pause on reciprocal tariffs to allow for ongoing negotiations.

The United States universal tariff level will also be brought down to 10 per cent.

U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent confirmed Canada and Mexico are included in the pause on those 10 per cent duties — but the actual impact isn’t clear because he said sectoral duties are still in place.

Canada was not directly targeted by Trump’s global tariffs but the country is still being hit by U.S. automobile, steel and aluminum tariffs and still faces the ongoing threat of economywide fentanyl-related tariffs.

While most of the world got a reprieve, Trump posted that China has shown a “lack of respect” and announced he’s increasing tariffs on Chinese imports to 125 per cent, effective immediately.