Trump pauses tariff imposition on Mexico and Canada

U.S. tariffs on Canada and Mexico have been delayed for 30 days BUT the additional 10-percent tax on Chinese imports have been put in place.

China responded with retaliatory tariffs.

Ahn Sung-jin reports.

U.S. President Donald Trump's 10-percent tariff on Chinese products took effect just after midnight Tuesday.

This means that all Chinese goods going into the country will be levied under the trade measures.

China immediately hit back with retaliatory taxes of its own.

The country's Customs Tariff Commission of the State Council announced that certain U.S. products such as petroleum or agricultural machinery will have a 10 percent tariff while coal and LNG will be levied 15 percent, starting on the 10th.

This comes as Trump stated that he will be talking with China on deals regarding stopping the flow of fentanyl, and the Panama Canal.

However, whether Trump will strike a deal with China remains unclear as Beijing's ambassador to the United Nations, Fu Cong reaffirmed the country's position during a press conference at the UN headquarters early Tuesday, stating that China will file a lawsuit with the World Trade Organization and implement countermeasures regarding Trump's tariffs.

Unlike China, less than a day ahead of Trump's imposition of 25-percent tariffs on Canada and Mexico, the tariffs have been postponed for at least a month.

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau on Monday local time posted on X that he had "a good call with President Trump" signaling that a deal has been struck.

The deal includes implementing a 1-point-3 billion U.S. dollar border plan which includes reinforcing the border with nearly 10-thousand front-line personnel as well as strengthening resources to respond to fentanyl and money laundering.

The agreement with Canada comes only hours after Trump announced a similar deal with Mexico.

Just a day before U.S. tariffs were to take place, Mexico agreed to also place 10-thousand national guard troops along the U.S. border to prevent the flow of drugs.

"I told him we wanted him to pause the tariffs, so we reached that agreement. I'm sure that during this month we'll be able to deliver good results for his people and the people of Mexico."

Over the next month, the U.S. and Mexico will be negotiating on trade and security issues before a final decision on whether to implement full tariffs.

Concerns over a global tariff war sparked by Trump are still high as he also warned of tariffs to the European Union.

"When targeted unfairly or arbitrarily, the European Union will respond firmly."

Whether these trial periods for Canada and Mexico will lead to successful tariff deals is unclear negotiations could see the U.S. adding on trade issues and concrete results may not appear regarding drug trafficking or illegal immigration issues.

Ahn Sung-jin, Arirang News.