Canada has suspended trade negotiations with the United States after talks collapsed late Friday night. At 12:01 a.m. ET, Washington imposed a 50 per cent tariff on nearly 28 billion dollars’ worth of Canadian imports.

Prime Minister Mark Carney immediately recalled Canadian negotiators to Ottawa, denouncing the last-minute demands from the U.S. as unfair and uneconomic.

Carney announced that Canada will retaliate dollar-for-dollar, matching the 28 billion dollars in levies to protect Canadian workers and businesses. In a statement posted on X, he said that America has fundamentally altered its trade relationships, even with its closest allies, and Canada will not return to its old relationship. He stressed that Ottawa’s goal had always been to secure the best deal for Canadians, never a deal at any price or on any deadline.

He acknowledged that progress had been made in recent weeks but said it was insufficient to meet Canada’s objectives.

As a result, he decided to suspend negotiations and directed Canada’s team to return home. He praised the negotiators for working hard in good faith until the very last minute but said the U.S. changes undermined the reliability of any agreement.

Carney confirmed that the U.S. tariffs would hit Canadian goods worth 28 billion dollars and vowed to match them dollar-for-dollar. He added that in the coming days, Ottawa would introduce further measures to support workers and businesses, building on the 25 billion dollars already provided over the past 18 months.

He outlined Canada’s broader economic strategy, which focuses on strengthening the domestic economy and diversifying partnerships abroad. Canada is advancing nearly 500 billion dollars in major infrastructure projects and working to unlock new export markets.

Carney highlighted that Canada’s existing free trade deals already provide preferential access to 1.5 billion consumers, with plans to double that market access by the end of the year.

He claimed that Canadian economic growth is accelerating, with the country on course to record the second-fastest growth in the G7 over the next two years. He emphasised that Canada is creating jobs at four times the rate of the United States, exports to non-U.S. markets are set to double over the next decade, and foreign direct investment is at its highest level in two decades, running at twice the rate of Canada’s nearest G7 competitor.

He declared that Canada now ranks as the most attractive country in the world for infrastructure investment.

Carney concluded by saying that Canada has what the world wants and will not allow any nation to determine its future. He pledged that Canada will set its own course to remain strong for all.

Washington responded sharply, with the U.S. Trade Representative calling Canada’s decision a missed opportunity. The U.S. accused Ottawa of walking back commitments and adding new demands, despite Washington offering sector-specific relief in steel, aluminium, autos, and lumber.

The U.S. statement said Canada had long enjoyed the most favourable access to the American market and continued to benefit even after retaliating against U.S. tariffs.

The U.S. Trade Representative insisted that Washington had offered Canada the best treatment of any major exporter, including tariff reductions and a forward-looking partnership covering export controls, digital trade, critical minerals, and supply chain coordination.

The proposal also included cooperation on aerospace, enforcement against forced labour imports, and the launch of formal USMCA negotiations. However, Canada declined to finalise the deal under those terms.

The collapse of talks comes amid global efforts to diversify trade partnerships in response to the Trump administration’s tariff program. According to Canada’s Office of the Chief Economist, exports to the U.S. fell 3.7 per cent last year due to global shocks and trade tensions.

This decline was offset by an 11.1 per cent increase in exports to non-U.S. markets, which now account for nearly one-third of Canada’s total exports, the highest share in four decades.

ANI