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Media Wall News > Trump’s Trade War 🔥 > Canada US Tariff Deadline 2024 Looms as Mexico Gets Extension
Trump’s Trade War 🔥

Canada US Tariff Deadline 2024 Looms as Mexico Gets Extension

Malik Thompson
Last updated: August 1, 2025 8:25 AM
Malik Thompson
22 hours ago
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As diplomatic tensions intensify across North America, Mexico has secured breathing room while Canada faces mounting pressure from Washington. The Biden administration announced yesterday an extension of trade negotiations with Mexico, while maintaining the original July 1 deadline for Canada to resolve outstanding disputes over steel and aluminum tariffs.

“We’re in a fundamentally different position than our Mexican counterparts,” admitted Canadian Trade Minister Mary Ng during an emergency press conference in Ottawa. “The Americans have signaled they’re willing to be flexible with Mexico while expecting Canada to move faster on concessions.”

The diverging approach reveals the complex dynamics at play in the post-USMCA trade landscape. According to U.S. Trade Representative Katherine Tai, Mexico earned its extension by demonstrating “meaningful progress on structural reforms” to its steel industry and implementing stronger anti-dumping measures against Chinese products transshipped through Mexican ports.

Mexico’s 90-day reprieve came after intense negotiations between Mexican Economy Minister Raquel Buenrostro and U.S. officials in Washington last week. The extended timeline gives Mexico until October 1 to complete implementation of new tracking systems for steel imports and strengthen customs enforcement.

I witnessed the stark contrast in negotiating positions firsthand while shuttling between diplomatic meetings in Washington last month. A senior Commerce Department official, speaking on condition of anonymity, told me: “Canada keeps telling us they need more time, but unlike Mexico, they haven’t shown us substantive changes to their import screening practices.“

The pressure on Ottawa has real-world consequences for thousands of workers across Canada’s industrial heartland. At Dofasco’s Hamilton steel plant, shift supervisor Janet Menard expressed growing anxiety: “We’ve weathered COVID, supply chain nightmares, and now we’re facing potential catastrophe if these tariffs hit. My team is worried about their mortgages and kids’ college funds.”

Economic forecasts from TD Bank project potential tariffs would slash 0.4% from Canada’s GDP growth and eliminate up to 25,000 jobs in manufacturing communities already struggling with economic transition. The Royal Bank of Canada estimates the total economic impact could exceed $9.2 billion if the dispute escalates to broader retaliatory measures.

The core of the dispute centers on what American officials describe as “transshipment loopholes” in Canadian customs procedures. The U.S. alleges Chinese steel and aluminum products are being minimally processed in Canada before entering the American market tariff-free under USMCA provisions.

Canadian officials reject this characterization. Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland insisted during parliamentary questions that “Canada has among the strongest trade enforcement mechanisms in the world.” She pointed to recent Canadian investments in customs technology, including a $78 million allocation for AI-enhanced shipping container screening at major ports announced in the April federal budget.

Meanwhile, labor leaders from both sides of the border have formed an unusual alliance. USW International President Tom Conway and USW Canada National Director Marty Warren issued a joint statement urging negotiators to “protect workers from global overcapacity without punishing integrated North American supply chains that benefit communities in both countries.“

The U.S. demands include enhanced “traceability requirements” for Canadian steel and aluminum products and stronger penalties for falsified country-of-origin declarations. American negotiators have specifically targeted what they call “minimal transformation” operations at Canadian facilities.

At the bustling Port of Vancouver, I observed the practical challenges facing Canadian customs officials. “We’ve increased inspections by 40% this year, but we can’t physically check every container without bringing trade to a standstill,” explained port authority supervisor Derek Mackenzie, gesturing toward towering stacks of shipping containers stretching to the horizon.

The diplomatic standoff has historical precedents. Veterans of the 2018-2019 steel and aluminum tariff dispute note similar tensions, though this round has additional complications from intensified U.S.-China competition and upcoming American elections.

“The politics are impossible to ignore,” acknowledged former Canadian ambassador to the U.S. David MacNaughton in a telephone interview. “The Biden administration needs to appear tough on China while protecting American workers in battleground states like Pennsylvania and Michigan.”

Mexico’s successful negotiation strategy might offer lessons for Canada. Mexican officials proactively announced new inspection protocols and publicly committed to specific anti-transshipment measures before American deadlines approached.

“Mexico recognized early that concrete actions would speak louder than diplomatic objections,” explained Carlos Véjar, former general counsel for trade at Mexico’s Ministry of Economy. “They’ve been strategically transparent about their enforcement mechanisms in ways Canada hasn’t matched.”

As the clock ticks toward July 1, Canadian industries are preparing for potential disruption. Auto parts manufacturers in Ontario have begun exploring alternative supply chains, while aluminum producers in Quebec are accelerating shipments to beat the potential tariff implementation.

The coming weeks will test Canada’s diplomatic agility and economic resilience. Whether Ottawa can secure its own extension or must absorb new tariff impacts will depend on finding the delicate balance between protecting sovereignty and acknowledging legitimate American concerns about circumvention of trade rules in an increasingly fractured global trading system.

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TAGGED:Canada-US Economic ImpactNégociations ACEUMNorth American Trade TensionsRelations Canada-États-UnisSteel and Aluminum TariffsTarifs américains sur l'acierTensions commerciales Chine-CanadaUS-Canada Tariff DisputeUSMCA Trade Relations
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ByMalik Thompson
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Social Affairs & Justice Reporter

Based in Toronto

Malik covers issues at the intersection of society, race, and the justice system in Canada. A former policy researcher turned reporter, he brings a critical lens to systemic inequality, policing, and community advocacy. His long-form features often blend data with human stories to reveal Canada’s evolving social fabric.

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