Ontario Premier Doug Ford announced Tuesday that his province will temporarily suspend its planned 25% surcharge on electricity exports to the U.S. after Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick agreed to restart trade negotiations.
Cooling Tensions
Ford described his conversation with Lutnick as “productive,” emphasizing their shared interest in maintaining strong economic ties. “We have both agreed, let cooler heads prevail,” Ford told reporters.
The decision follows a dramatic escalation in the trade dispute between the U.S. and Canada. Earlier in the day, U.S. President Donald Trump had announced that he would double planned tariffs on Canadian steel and aluminum imports to 50%.
Trade Negotiations in Washington
Ford’s planned electricity surcharge was set to impact exports to Michigan, New York, and Minnesota, prompting a swift response from the U.S. administration. However, following Ford’s conversation with Lutnick, both sides agreed to a high-level meeting in Washington, D.C., on Thursday to discuss a renewed United States-Mexico-Canada trade agreement (USMCA).
U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer will also be present at the discussions.
Trump Adjusts Tariff Plans
After Ford and Lutnick’s call, White House trade adviser Peter Navarro confirmed that Trump would not move forward with the additional 25% tariff on Canadian metals that he had threatened earlier in the day.
However, the originally planned 25% tariff on steel and aluminum imports from Canada and other trade partners will take effect at midnight on Wednesday, with no exceptions or exemptions.
Further Tariffs Loom
White House spokesman Kush Desai praised Trump’s negotiation tactics, stating, “President Trump has once again used the leverage of the American economy, which is the best and biggest in the world, to deliver a win for the American people.”
Despite the temporary tariff reprieve, Trump has reaffirmed his plan to impose additional 25% tariffs on other Canadian imports starting April 2.
