President Trump Suspends Trade Negotiations with Canada Over Digital Tax Dispute

President Donald Trump announced the termination of trade talks with Canada after the country introduced a digital services tax targeting large American technology firms. On social media, Trump described Canada’s move as a direct attack, stating, “We are hereby terminating ALL discussions on trade with Canada, effective immediately.”

Canada plans to impose a 3% tax on revenue from platforms like Facebook and Google, retroactive to 2022, affecting companies earning over $14.6 million annually. The move appears to be inspired by similar European Union measures, which are also under discussion with the U.S.

Trump indicated that Canada would soon be informed of tariffs to do business with the U.S., emphasizing that the digital tax was unreasonable and prompted the immediate halt of all trade negotiations. He also mentioned that the U.S. would set tariffs for Canada within the next week.

The sudden move caused a dip in stock markets, though they remained on track for positive weekly gains. Previously, Trump had threatened to impose a 50% duty on European Union countries over similar digital taxes but postponed the action to allow for negotiations.