US President Donald Trump holds up outgoing President Joe Biden’s letter as he signs executive orders in the Oval Office of the WHite House in Washington, DC, on Jan. 20, 2025.
Jim Watson | AFP | Getty Images
In an early sign of an intensified focus on trade, President Donald Trump said Monday that tariffs could be levied against Mexico and Canada as soon as early February.
“We’re thinking in terms of 25% (levies) on Mexico and Canada, because they’re allowing a vast number of people” over the border, Trump said. The president called Canada “a very bad abuser” and said a target date for the tariffs would be “I think Feb. 1”
The remarks were made to members of the press as the newly minted chief executive offered a slew of executive orders aimed at everything from regulations to free speech to immigration.
While it’s been no secret that Trump plans on implementing across-the-board duties on U.S. trading partners, the timing and extent has been in question. There had been some speculation that the tariffs could be delayed and might be targeted at certain essential items rather than being more broad-based.
In his remarks, Trump provided no further details on how and when the tariffs could come. His trade order to not impose new tariffs.
Trump reportedly has been considering a 25% tariff on Canadian goods, part of plans to impose 10% duties on all countries that could escalate over time. Such a move against Canada would hit its economy hard considering the two nations do in excess of half a trillion dollars a year in trade.
The president also toyed with the idea of hitting China with intensified tariffs over social media site TikTok. Trump rescued the app from being shuttered in the U.S. with a temporary reprieve that likely will depend on the owner finding a U.S. partner. Should China not agree to that, Trump said he could use a tariff as a persuasion tool.
“If we wanted to make a deal with TikTok and it was a good deal and China wouldn’t approve it, then I think ultimately they’d approve it, because we’d put tariffs on China,” he said. “I’m not saying I would, but you certainly could do that.”
Along with seeking to protect U.S. business interests, Trump has said he wants to use the levies as ways to encourage Canada and Mexico to clamp down on fentanyl trafficking. In his inaugural address, Trump pledged to designate international drug gangs as terrorist groups. Doing so gives the administration additional tools in fighting the inflow of drugs across the border.
“I will immediately begin the overhaul of our trade system to protect American workers and families,” Trump said in his speech. “Instead of taxing our citizens to enrich other countries, we will tariff and tax foreign countries to enrich our citizens.”
He further established the External Revenue Service, set up to help collect the duties, which he said will lead to “massive amounts of money” to come into the federal coffers. The U.S. Customs and Border Protection currently serves that role.
Stock market futures gave up earlier gains as Trump spoke about the Mexico and Canada tariffs and treasury yields declined. The president earlier signed an executive order aimed at inflation, promising “emergency price relief” through measures targeted at housing, health care, appliances and other costs. The dollar also moved lower and was recently off nearly 1% on the session against its global trading partners.
