Trudeau accused the US president of planning “a total collapse of the Canadian economy because that will make it easier to annex us.” “That is never going to happen. We will never be the 51st state,” he told reporters on Tuesday.

Trump has imposed 25% tariffs on products entering the US from Canada and Mexico and has increased a levy on goods coming from China.

The Canadian prime minister announced retaliatory tariffs on US exports and warned that a trade war would be costly for both countries.

“This is a time to hit back hard and to demonstrate that a fight with Canada will have no winners,” Trudeau said.

He said that Canada’s main goal remains to get the tariffs lifted so that they “don’t last a second longer than necessary”.

Trump says he is protecting US jobs and manufacturing, and trying to prevent illegal migration and drug trafficking. The US president says his goal is to clamp down on the powerful opioid fentanyl, and has variously blamed the other countries for the drug’s arrival in the US.

After Trudeau’s press conference, in a post on Truth Social, Trump doubled down on his threat of further tariffs: “Please explain to Governor Trudeau, of Canada, that when he puts on a Retaliatory Tariff on the U.S., our Reciprocal Tariff will immediately increase by a like amount!”

Responding to the accusations, Trudeau said on Tuesday there was “no justification” for the new tariffs, because less than 1% of the fentanyl intercepted at the US border came from Canada.

Trudeau’s words were echoed by Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum, who said there was “no motive, no reason, no justification” for Trump’s move. Speaking on Tuesday, she too vowed to issue her own “tariff and non-tariff measures” – but said further details would be given on Sunday.

Experts say Trump’s tariffs are likely to push up prices for consumers in the US and abroad.

The three countries targeted are America’s top trading partners, and the tit-for-tat measures have also prompted fears of a wider trade war.

Tariffs are a tax on imports from other countries, designed to protect against cheaper competition from elsewhere and boost businesses and jobs at home.

Canada’s retaliatory measures include a 25% reciprocal tariff that will be imposed on C$155bn (US$107bn; £84bn) of American goods:

• A tariff on C$30bn worth of goods will become effective immediately
• Tariffs on the remaining C$125bn of American products will become effective in 21 days’ time

Canada’s Immigration Minister Marc Miller warned that as many as a million jobs in Canada were at risk if the tariffs were implemented, given how intertwined trade was between the two countries.

“We can’t replace an economy that is responsible for 80% of our trade overnight and it’s going to hurt,” he said on Monday.

Speaking to the AFP news agency, a car manufacturing employee in the Canadian province of Ontario said people were indeed “pretty scared” of being laid off. “I just bought my first house,” Joel Soleski said. “I might have to look for work elsewhere.”

The sector is one that could be badly affected by the new tariffs regime in North America. Car parts may cross US-Canada border several times during the manufacturing process, and so might be taxed on multiple occasions.

Ontario Premier Doug Ford, whose province is home to Canada’s auto manufacturing industry, told reporters on Tuesday that he anticipates assembly plants will “shut down on both sides of the border” as a result of the tariffs.

The tariffs were called “reckless” by the Canadian Chamber of Commerce, whose president Candace Laing cautioned that the move would force both Canada and the US towards “recession, job losses and economic disaster”.

Ms Laing warned they would also increase prices for Americans, and force US businesses to find alternate suppliers that she said “are less reliable than Canadian ones”.

Canadian provincial leaders have vowed their own responses.

Ford of Ontario mooted the possibility of cutting off Canadian electricity supplies and exports of high-grade nickel to the US, as well as putting an export levy of 25% on electricity sent to power homes in Michigan, New York and Minnesota.

Canada exports enough electricity to power some six million American homes.

Ontario and other provinces have also moved to remove US-made liquor off their shelves. In Nova Scotia, Premier Tim Houston said his province will ban American companies from bidding on provincial contracts, as will Ontario.

Ford also announced that a C$100m ($68m; £55.1) contract with Elon Musk’s satellite internet company Starlink will be cancelled.

Meanwhile China – which now faces tariffs of 20% after Trump doubled an earlier levy – has vowed to fight any trade war to the “bitter end”. It has announced its own counter-measures – including tariffs on a range of US agricultural and food products.

US President Donald Trump has imposed 25% tariffs on products entering the US from Canada and Mexico – which became effective overnight – and has increased a levy on goods coming from China.

Canada has responded with tariffs on tens of billions of dollars’ worth of products imported from the US. Its provincial leaders have suggested going further.

Trump says he is protecting US jobs and manufacturing, and trying to prevent illegal migration and drug trafficking. But experts say he is likely to push up prices for consumers in the US and abroad.

The three countries targeted are America’s top trading partners, and the tit-for-tat measures have also prompted fears of a wider trade war.

Tariffs are a tax on imports from other countries, designed to protect against cheaper competition from elsewhere and boost businesses and jobs at home.

In addition to the 25% tariffs on products entering from Canada and Mexico, Trump is also charging a 10% tariff on Canadian energy.

Trump’s team have characterised tariffs as a key negotiating tool. The US president wants to clamp down on the powerful opioid fentanyl, and has variously blamed the other countries for the drug’s arrival in the US.

A statement from Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said there was “no justification” for the new US tariffs, because less than 1% of the fentanyl intercepted at the US border came from Canada.

Trudeau also noted that his country had taken steps to further limit the flow of the drug during a month-long period in which Trump’s new tariffs were paused.

Anticipating the start of the new American tariffs, Trudeau’s statement outlined Canada’s retaliatory measures – under which a 25% tariff will be imposed on C$155bn (US$107bn; £84bn) of American goods:

• A tariff on C$30bn worth of goods will become effective immediately
• Tariffs on the remaining C$125bn on American products will become effective in 21 days’ time

Earlier on Monday, Foreign Minister Melanie Joly told reporters that Trump’s tariffs represented an “existential threat to us”, because jobs were at risk.

Immigration Minister Marc Miller warned that as many as a million jobs in Canada were at risk if the tariffs were implemented, given how intertwined trade was between the two countries.

“We can’t replace an economy that is responsible for 80% of our trade overnight and it’s going to hurt,” he said on Monday.

Speaking to the AFP news agency, a car manufacturing employee in the Canadian province of Ontario said people were indeed “pretty scared” of being laid off. “I just bought my first house,” Joel Soleski said. “I might have to look for work elsewhere.”

The sector is one that could be badly affected by the new tariffs regime in North America. Car parts may cross US/Canadian border several times during the manufacturing process, and so might be taxed on multiple occasions.

Canadian provincial leaders have vowed their own responses. Ontario Premier Doug Ford mooted the possibility of cutting off Canadian electricity supplies and exports of high-grade nickel to the US.

Canada exports enough electricity to power some six million American homes.

“If they want to try to annihilate Ontario, I will do anything, including cutting off their energy, with a smile on my face,” Ford told NBC on Monday.

Meanwhile China – which now faces tariffs of 20% after Trump doubled an earlier levy – has vowed to fight any trade war to the “bitter end”. It has announced its own counter-measures – including tariffs on a range of US agricultural and food products.

Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum has also vowed her own response.

Trump has repeatedly spoken of making the neighbouring country the 51st state of America. He has also vowed to impose new import taxes on Canada, which is one of his top trading partners.

Speaking ahead of his meeting with the King at Sandringham, outgoing PM Trudeau said he would discuss issues of importance to Canadians, including “standing up for our sovereignty and our independence as a nation”.

The King has also extended an invitation to Trump to visit him in what will be an unprecedented second state visit.

As head of state of the Commonwealth nation, the King has faced calls to give Canada his vocal backing in the face of Trump’s statements.

But Charles faced a difficult tightrope to walk, the former leader of the Canadian province of Alberta suggested.

Writing on X, Jason Kenney said the King could only act on the advice of the Canadian PM, who “should ask [Charles] to underscore Canadian sovereignty”.

New import taxes announced by Trump are also set to come into effect on Tuesday, targeting goods arriving from China and Mexico as well as Canada.

The president is eager to protect American manufacturing and jobs, and to address the US trade deficit.

He suggested in a post on his Truth Social platform on Sunday that his country was effectively subsidising Canada by paying to import its products. Without this flow of capital, Canada “ceases to exist as a viable country”, he wrote.

Trump has previously spoken of using “economic force” to make Canada the 51st state of America. But he said he was not considering using military force – an assurance he has not given while stating his ambitions of taking the Panama Canal and Greenland.

The question of how to respond to Trump’s tariff threats and other statements about Canadian sovereignty has dominated the debate in Trudeau’s Liberal Party, with candidates vying to replace the PM after he announced his resignation in January.

On the other side of the Canadian political divide, Conservative leader Pierre Poilievre has also attacked Trump’s statements.

The King has found himself at the centre of a recent whirlwind of diplomatic meetings following Trump’s return to the presidency – some of which relate to the war in Ukraine.

On Sunday, he also met Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky – who ended up in a row of his own with Trump at the White House on Friday.

Zelensky was in the UK to meet European leaders, who reiterated their support for Ukraine in its conflict with Russia – with American support apparently on the wane under Trump.

“You can’t take our country – and you can’t take our game,” Trudeau wrote on X.

Canada’s thrilling 3-2 overtime win in the 4 Nations Face Off final in Boston took place amid rising tensions between the two neighbours.

Not only is there the looming threat of an economically damaging trade war, there are Trump’s persistent musings on making Canada the 51st US state.

The American national anthem has been regularly booed by Canadian sports fans in recent weeks but this time it was the US home fans doing most of the booing.

As their jeers rang out, the Canadian national anthem was sung with different lyrics in protest over Trump’s statements.

A representative for singer Chantal Kreviazuk told CBC News she intentionally sang “that only us command” instead of “in all of us command”.

In a post on Instagram with a photo of the adjusted lyrics, Kreviazuk said: “We should express our outrage in the face of any abuses of power.”

On any ordinary day, this fixture would have been a significant one for the two neighbouring countries who have long been friendly rivals on the ice. But recent events gave it added spice.

And the sudden-death goal from Connor McDavid which sealed the win prompted delirium among the travelling fans.

The US president was unable to make the game but he called the team to wish them good luck.

He also repeated his desire to absorb Canada, writing in a Truth Social post ahead of the game that he hoped the country “will someday, maybe soon, become our cherished and very important, Fifty First State”.

For fans across North America, the final was a “dream match-up,” ice hockey writer Daniel Nugent-Bowman told the BBC. Not since the 2014 Winter Olympics had the top men’s ice hockey players from Canada and the US faced off in such a consequential game.

Both countries boast some of the biggest stars in the National Hockey League (NHL), like Canadians Mitch Marner and McDavid, and Americans Auston Matthews and Jack Eichel. The game was a chance for this new generation of players to prove themselves.

But in Canada, the game was also a personal one, giving both die-hard and casual fans an opportunity to bask in national pride at a time when the country’s sovereignty looks to be threatened by its closest neighbour.

Few Canadians would dispute how integral ice hockey is to the country’s national identity.

The sport has served as a backdrop to some of the most patriotic moments in Canada’s history, like Sidney Crosby’s overtime gold medal goal at the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver.

Historically, Canada has had the upper hand against the US. The two countries have met 20 times in best-on-best tournaments since the 1976 Canada Cup, with Canada winning 14 of those games.

The 4 Nations Face Off final ended 3-2 in overtime.

On any ordinary day, this fixture would have been a significant one for the two neighbouring countries who have long been friendly rivals on the ice.

But heating up the rivalry this time was the looming threat of an economically damaging trade war, as well as Donald Trump’s persistent musings to annex Canada and make it the 51st state.

Trump himself was invited to attend the game in Boston by Team USA’s general manager Bill Guerin. The US president was unable to make it, but made a point of calling the team to wish them good luck.

He also repeated his desire to absorb Canada, writing in a Truth Social post ahead of the game that he hoped the country “will someday, maybe soon, become our cherished and very important, Fifty First State”.

Canada’s public safety minister David McGuinty later told reporters he took Trump’s quip as a sign that the president was “worried about the outcome” of the game.

After Canada’s victory, outgoing PM Justin Trudeau – dubbed “Governor Trudeau” by Trump – posted on X: “You can’t take our country – and you can’t take our game.”

For fans across North America, the final was a “dream match-up,” ice hockey writer Daniel Nugent-Bowman told the BBC. Not since the 2014 Winter Olympics had the top men’s ice hockey players from Canada and the US faced off in such a consequential game.

Both countries boast some of the biggest stars in the National Hockey League (NHL), like Canadians Mitch Marner and Connor McDavid, and Americans Auston Matthews and Jack Eichel. The game was a chance for this new generation of players to prove themselves.

But in Canada, the game was also a personal one, giving both die-hard and casual fans an opportunity to bask in national pride at a time when the country’s sovereignty looks to be threatened by its closest neighbour.

The first game between Canada and the US of this tournament, played on 15 February in Montreal, saw the American national anthem booed by Canadian fans, despite the announcer asking fans beforehand – in both English and French – to show respect to the opposing team.

Vocal protests of the US anthem have become a common sight at sports games in Canada over the past month since Trump threatened a 25% tariff on all Canadian goods.

When it came to singing the Canadian anthem, fans – including Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau – belted it out at the top of their lungs.

Three fist fights then broke out on the ice in the first nine seconds of the game between the American and Canadian players. It was an astonishing sight, even by ice hockey standards where fights are common.

Matthew Tkachuk, a Team USA player who was among those involved in the brawls, told reporters afterwards that his team needed to deliver a message that “It’s our time right now.”

Perhaps the loudest message sent that day was Team USA’s decisive 3-1 win against Canada.

Few Canadians would dispute how integral ice hockey is to the country’s national identity.

The sport has served as a backdrop to some of the most patriotic moments in Canada’s history, like Sidney Crosby’s overtime gold medal goal at the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver.

Historically, Canada has had the upper hand against the US. The two countries have met 20 times in best-on-best tournaments since the 1976 Canada Cup, with Canada winning 14 of those games.

Kevin Brosseau, a former member of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police and intelligence adviser to Trudeau, will begin the role immediately.

Trump’s threat to impose import taxes of 25% on all goods from Canada was paused for 30 days in February, after he struck a deal with Trudeau that included new US-Canada border measures.

On Monday, Trump added another threat, saying he planned to add a 25% tax on global steel and aluminium imports to the US from 12 March.

If it goes ahead, that will particularly affect Canada, which supplies the US with more steel and aluminium products than any other country.

All 13 of the leaders of Canadian provinces and territories are in Washington DC on Wednesday meeting US lawmakers to make the case against tariffs.

Ontario Premier Doug Ford told reporters on Wednesday morning: “Make no mistake about it, the president knows we’re here, knows we’re concerned.”

The tariff threats coming from the Trump administration has ignited fears of a trade war with Canada, a close US trade and security ally.

Canada has vowed swift retaliation to Trump’s tariffs.

In a press release announcing the fentanyl tsar, Trudeau said the appointment “will accelerate Canada’s efforts to detect, disrupt, and dismantle the fentanyl trade, in partnership with the United States”.

Less than 1% of fentanyl “intercepted at the US border comes from Canada”, the press release said, but “any amount of fentanyl was too much”.

Canada also said it has added new Black Hawk helicopters, drones and nearly 10,000 frontline personnel working to protect the 8,890km (5,525 mile) boundary.

The effort to battle international organised crime also includes a C$200m ($139m; £113m) investment into a new intelligence directive.

Since returning to the White House last month, Trump has been in one trade standoff with Canada and America’s other neighbour, Mexico.

He agreed on 4 February to delay for 30 days his threat of 25% tariffs on all goods arriving from both countries. The postponement came after his two neighbours vowed action to tackle illegal migration and the flow of drugs to the US.

Canada and Mexico are the top US trade partners, along with China.

Trump moved forward with a 10% tariff on all goods entering the US from China, which as retaliated with countermeasures against US goods.

Trump says he will levy a 25% import tax on all steel and aluminium products entering the US from 12 March. Canada is the top exporter of both metals to the US.

Since returning to office last month, Trump has announced a wide range of these tariffs to try to protect US jobs and industries. Economists say they are likely to raise prices for ordinary Americans.

The new tariffs were “entirely unjustified”, Trudeau said, as Canada found itself in a second trade standoff with Washington in a matter of weeks. Canada was “the US’s closest ally”, he added.

A range of metal-exporting countries are scrambling to make a deal in response to the tariff on steel and aluminium vowed by Trump.

The US imports six million tonnes of Canadian steel products and more than three million tonnes of aluminium products per year – more than from any other country.

Canadian metal exports were making North America as a whole “more competitive and secure”, Canadian Industry Minister François-Philippe Champagne argued on Monday.

Canadian provincial leaders, too, have condemned Trump’s plan. Quebec’s François Legault said his province alone sent millions of tonnes of aluminium to the US per year – asking whether Trump would prefer to source the metal from his rival, China.

Federal official opposition leader, Pierre Poilievre, said he would issue matching tariffs targeting the US, if elected as Canadian prime minister.

The head of the Canadian Steel Producers Association warned that a range of sectors could be hit, saying similar measures by Trump during his first term had damaged industry in both countries.

“We have steel that they need and they have steel that we need… we need each other,” Catherine Cobden told CBC.

Tariffs are taxes charged on goods imported from other countries. Companies that import goods from abroad pay the tariffs to the US government.

Economists warn that they are likely to raise prices for US consumers, for example if sellers choose to raise prices after paying higher duties on imported goods.

US businesses dependent on imports have also raised concerns, but Trump says his plans will boost domestic production. On Monday, he said his plan was “a big deal, the beginning of making America rich again”.

The taxes themselves – which Trump also used during his first term in the White House – are key to the returning president’s economic vision. He is also seeking to address a trade deficit, which means that the US imports more than it exports.

Trump’s allies also say he sees such measures as an essential negotiating tool when he wants another country to do something for him.

Since returning to the White House last month, Trump has already been in one trade standoff with Canada and America’s other neighbour, Mexico.

But he agreed on 4 February to delay for 30 days his threat of 25% tariffs on all goods arriving from both countries. The postponement came after his two neighbours vowed action to tackle illegal migration and the flow of drugs to the US.

Both countries delayed their own retaliatory measures at the same time.

Canada and Mexico are some of Trump’s top trade partners, along with China – which Trump has targeted with a 10% tariff on all goods entering the US. That tax has already come into force, and China has hit back with measures against US goods.

In addition to his other, delayed plan to target Canada and Mexico with specific tariffs, Trump has also hinted he could levy taxes on goods imported from the European Union “pretty soon”.

Asked in recent days about the threat of retaliation from his trade partners, Trump said: “I don’t mind.”

After last-minute calls with Trump, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau agreed to reinforce his country’s border with the US to clamp down on migration and the flow of the deadly drug fentanyl.

Earlier, Trump made a deal with Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum. She agreed to reinforce the northern border with troops. In return the US would limit the flow of guns into Mexico.

But a US tariff of 10% on Chinese imports has come into effect, after a deadline of 00:01 EST (05:00 GMT) on Tuesday passed.

Shortly after, Beijing announced it was imposing retaliatory tariffs on a raft of American products, including 15% on coal and liquefied natural gas and 10% on crude oil and agricultural machinery.

Trump earlier said he planned to speak on the phone to his Chinese counterpart soon. He described the 10% import taxes as the “opening salvo” and said they could become “very, very substantial” if no agreement is made.

Monday’s breakthrough with Canada and Mexico came as they prepared retaliatory tariffs on American goods.

After two phone calls on Monday, Trump and Trudeau posted on social media that they had reached a temporary agreement on securing the border that would avoid tariffs for at least 30 days.

Both leaders portrayed the plan as a win.

“As president, it is my responsibility to ensure the safety of ALL Americans, and I am doing just that. I am very pleased with this initial outcome,” Trump wrote on his social media site Truth SocialTrudeau said Canada was implementing a $1.3bn (£1bn) border plan that included nearly 10,000 frontline workers and more resources to halt the flow of fentanyl, a synthetic drug 50 times stronger than heroin, which Trump has cited as a major concern.

The prime minister also said Canada would appoint a “fentanyl czar” and launch a joint strike force with the US to combat crime, fentanyl and money laundering.

Much of the border security plan had already been announced by Canada in December.

It includes enhanced co-ordination with US law enforcement, increased information sharing, limiting traffic at the border, and the deployment of drones and Black Hawk helicopters for surveillance.

The news came just hours after Trump paused a separate tariff on Mexican goods in exchange for that country sending 10,000 National Guard troops to its border with the US.

President Sheinbaum broke the news on X, writing she had had a “good conversation with great respect for our relationship and sovereignty” with her US counterpart.

Trump described his phone conversation with the Mexican leader as “very friendly”.

In 2019, Mexico’s government agreed to send 15,000 soldiers to its northern frontier to avoid tariffs from the first Trump administration.

Trump has framed tariffs as a tool for growing the US economy, protecting jobs and raising tax revenue.

“Tariffs for us, nobody can compete with us because we’re the pot of gold,” he said on Monday afternoon.

“But if we don’t keep winning and keep doing well, we won’t be the pot of gold.”

Economists, however, have warned that tit-for-tat tariffs could raise prices for a wide range of products, including cars, lumber, steel, food and alcohol.

Items had already been removed from some shelves, and stock markets lurched downwards on Monday before recovering slightly with the announcement that tariffs had been suspended.

Andrew Furey, premier of Newfoundland and Labrador, acknowledged that the 30 days had brought some relief, but warned Canadians that a trade war still loomed.

He told the BBC he looked forward to using “the calm Canadian diplomatic approach to try to resolve any future tariffs”, but cautioned against further “chaotic” actions from the US president.

“We’re left as Canadians feeling a bit confused by this attack from our closest friend, our largest trading partner, our ally, family,” Furey said.

The premier of Ontario – Canada’s most populous province, which makes up about 38% of the country’s GDP – welcomed the pause and said he would suspend plans for retaliatory measures.

Premier Doug Ford wrote on X: “Make no mistake, Canada and Ontario continue to stare down the threat of tariffs.

“Whether it’s tomorrow, in a month or a year from now… President Trump will continue to use the threat of tariffs to get what he wants.”

On Sunday, Trump indicated the 27-nation European Union would be his next target for tariffs, without providing further details.

The American president suggested that Britain, which left the EU in 2020, might be spared much duties.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau set out “far-reaching” tariffs of 25%, affecting 155bn Canadian dollars’ worth ($106.6bn; £86bn) of American goods ranging from beer and wine, to household appliances and sporting goods.

The move matches US President Donald Trump 25% levy on Canadian and Mexican imports to the US – and an additional 10% on China – over his concerns about illegal immigration and drug trafficking.

Trudeau said he would “not back down in standing up for Canadians”, but warned of real consequences for people on both sides of the border.

“We don’t want to be here, we didn’t ask for this,” he said at a news conference late on Saturday.

The Canadian prime minister added that tariffs on 30bn-worth US goods would come into force on Tuesday and another 125bn in 21 days to give Canadian firms time to adjust.

Trudeau’s response targets items including American beer, wine, bourbon, fruits and fruit juices, vegetables, perfumes, clothing and shoes, as well as household appliances, sporting goods and furniture.

Lumber and plastics will also face levies and non-tariff measures are also being considered are related to critical minerals and procurement.

Economists have warned the introduction of the import taxes by the US, and the response from Canada, as well as Mexico and China, could lead to prices rising on a wide range of products for consumers.

A tariff is a domestic tax levied on goods as they enter a country, proportional to the value of the import.

The prospect of higher tariffs being introduced on imports to the US has been concerning many world leaders because it will make it more expensive for companies to sell goods in the world’s largest economy.

Christopher Sands, director of the Wilson Center’s Canada Institute, told the BBC that tit-for-tat tariffs between the US and Canada were “mutually assured destruction” and they would impact people’s lives very quickly.

He said there would be no adjustment time as US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent had recently proposed: “Just a massive hit that’s going to make a lot of people’s lives a lot tougher, very quickly.”

But the taxes are a central part of Trump’s economic vision. He sees them as a way of growing the US economy, protecting jobs and raising tax revenue – and in this case, pushing for policy action.

Canada, Mexico and the US have deeply integrated economies, with an estimated $2bn (£1.6bn) worth of manufactured goods crossing the borders daily.

Canada is America’s largest foreign supplier of crude oil. According to the most recent official trade figures, 61% of oil imported into the US between January and November last year came from Canada.

While 25% has been slapped on Canadian goods imported to the US, its energy faces a lower 10% tariff.

The White House said on Saturday the implementation of tariffs was “necessary to hold China, Mexico, and Canada accountable for their promises to halt the flood of poisonous drugs into the United States”.

But Trudeau pushed back on the suggestion the shared border posed a security concern, saying less than 1% of fentanyl going into the US comes from Canada.

He added less than 1% of illegal migrants entered the US through the border and that tariffs were “not the best way we can actually work together to save lives”

Trump has indicated he is ready to escalate the duties further if the countries retaliate to his tariffs, as Canada has done.

Prior to the tariffs announcement, Canada has pledged more than $1bn to boost security at its shared border with the US.

Trudeau said on Saturday had not spoken to Trump since he had taken office.

Mark Carney, the former head of Canada’s and England’s central banks, told BBC Newsnight on Friday that the tariffs would hit economic growth and drive up inflation.

“They’re going to damage the US’s reputation around the world,” said Carney, who is also in the running to replace Trudeau as leader of Canada’s Liberal Party.

US President Donald Trump has announced sweeping new tariffs on all goods imported from America’s three largest trading partners, China, Mexico and Canada.

Trump said the US would impose tariffs beginning on Tuesday of 25% on Canada and Mexico, and 10% on China. Canadian energy faces a lower 10% tariff.

He had threatened to impose the import taxes if the three countries did not address his concerns about illegal immigration and drug trafficking.

Both Canada and Mexico said they are preparing retaliatory tariffs of their own.

Trump has indicated he is ready to escalate the duties if the countries retaliate.

Together, China, Mexico and Canada accounted for more than 40% of imports into the US last year.

“Today’s tariff announcement is necessary to hold China, Mexico, and Canada accountable for their promises to halt the flood of poisonous drugs into the United States,” the White House said in a statement on X on Saturday.

Trump posted on his Truth Social platform: “This was done through the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) because of the major threat of illegal aliens and deadly drugs killing our Citizens, including fentanyl.”

A tariff is a domestic tax levied on goods as they enter the country, proportional to the value of the import. They are a central part of Trump’s economic vision.

He sees them as a way of growing the US economy, protecting jobs and raising tax revenue – and in this case, pushing for policy action from allies.

In her response, Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum called allegations that the Mexican government had alliances with criminal organisations “slander”.

The White House, in its announcement, accused Mexico’s government of having “an intolerable alliance” with Mexican drug trafficking organisations.

In a statement, Sheinbaum called on the US to do more to clamp down on the illegal flow of guns south to arm the cartels.

Her country is willing to work with the US, she said. “Problems are not resolved by imposing tariffs, but by talking.”

She has instructed her economy minister to respond with tariff and non-tariff measures. They are expected to include retaliatory tariffs of 25% on US goods.

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said his country will also respond.

1:04Watch: Canada’s PM announces tariffs of 25% on US goods

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“We don’t want to be here, we didn’t ask for this,” he said in a news conference late on Saturday.

“But we will not back down in standing up for Canadians.”

His government will impose 25% tariffs on $155bn worth of American goods – $30bn will come into force on Tuesday and another $125bn in 21 days.

Targeted items include American beer, wine, bourbon, fruits and fruit juices, vegetables, perfumes, clothing and shoes, as well as household appliances, sporting goods and furniture. Lumber and plastics will also face levies.

Non-tariff measures being considered are related to critical minerals and procurement, although Trudeau did not offer more detail.

The prime minister pushed back on the suggestion the shared border posed a security concern, saying less than 1% of fentanyl going into the United States comes from Canada.

In a bid to avoid the tariffs altogether, Ottawa had promised to implement C$1.3bn ($900m; £700m) of new security measures along its US border.

“Tariffs are not the best way we can work together to save lives,” Trudeau said.

He also said he had not spoken to Trump since the inauguration, but would keep lines open with US counterparts.

China said in a statement that it is strongly dissatisfied with the levies and “firmly opposes” them.

It added that it would file a lawsuit with the World Trade Organization against the US for its “wrongful practice” and would take countermeasures to “safeguard its own rights and interests”.

China’s vice-premier Ding Xuexiang told the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, last month that his country was looking for a “win-win” solution to trade tensions and wanted to expand its imports.

Canada, Mexico and the US have deeply integrated economies, with an estimated $2bn (£1.6bn) worth of manufactured goods crossing the borders daily.

Economists say the tariffs and subsequent retaliation could raise prices on a wide range of products, from cars, lumber, and steel to food like frozen French fries, avocados, and tomatoes, to alcohol.

The auto sector could be especially hard hit. Auto parts cross the three borders multiple times before a final vehicle is assembled. TD Economics suggest the average US car price could increase by around $3,000.

A January report by the Peterson Institute for International Economics suggested blanket 25% tariffs on Canada and Mexico would slow growth and accelerate inflation in all three countries.

On Friday, Trump acknowledged there could be “some temporary, short-term disruption” from the tariffs.

The Canadian Chamber of Commerce released a statement saying tariffs will have “immediate and direct consequences on Canadian and American livelihoods” and will “drastically increase the cost of everything for everyone.

US industry groups have also raised alarm bells.

The National Homebuilders Association said the levies could increase housing costs.

The Farmers for Free Trade said, with many US farmers already struggling, “adding tariffs to the mix would only exacerbate the situation across much of rural America”.

The US Retail Industry Leaders Association, which includes big names such as Home Depot, Target and Walgreens among its more than 200 members, expressed hope tariffs could still be averted.

The White House, explaining on Saturday why it was targeting its top trading partners, said Mexican cartels were responsible for trafficking fentanyl, methamphetamine and other drugs.

It said tariffs on Canada would remain until it “co-operates with the US against drug traffickers and on border security”.

Lastly, it said “China plays the central role in the fentanyl crisis” with exports of the lethal synthetic painkiller.

Both the northern and southern US borders have reported drug seizures, though amounts at the border with Canada are considerably lower than those with Mexico, according to official data,

US border agents seized 43lbs (19.5kg) of fentanyl at the northern border between October 2023 and last September, compared to more than 21,000lbs (9,525.4kg) at the southern border.

Still, recent reports from Canadian intelligence agencies suggest a growing number of transnational organised crime groups are manufacturing drugs in Canada.

Ashley Davis, a Republican lobbyist for businesses, who represents major US companies, including Walmart and Boeing, and has been involved in discussions about tariffs, told the BBC’s World Business Report she thinks Trump will pull back on the tariffs in North America if he can point to progress on the issues he has raised as complaints – especially immigration.

“You have to remember – the border and China are the two biggest issues that Americans voted him on in the elections in November. Anything he can do to claim wins on that, I think he’s going to do,” she said.