Trump says tariffs to go ahead as planned, target countries retaliate

And on the topic of tariffs.

The 25-percent duty on Canadian and Mexican imports into the American market are going into effect on this Tuesday as are additional tariffs against China.

Ahn Sung-jin reports.

U.S. President Donald Trump's imposition of 25% tariffs on Canada and Mexico went into effect on March 4th, local time.

Likewise, tariffs on China were doubled, to 20 percent on the same day.

However, these countries issued immediate responses.

China's Ministry of Commerce was quick to respond, issuing a statement that said Beijing will take retaliatory measures with "import taxes" of 10 to 15 percent on some U.S. goods, including American beef, pork, dairy and agricultural products starting from March 10th.

The statement also said that imposing tariffs is a "typical act of unilateralism and bullying."

China also vowed to impose export control sanctions on some American companies for strategic items.

Canada has also retaliated by immediately imposing 25 percent tariffs on 30 billion Canadian dollars or 20 billion U.S. dollars worth of U.S. imports, adding that more will be levied on another 86 billion U.S. dollars worth of goods within the next 21 days.

In a written statement, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said these tariffs will continue until U.S. trade measures are withdrawn.

These corresponding measures come as Trump again cited drug trafficking as a major reason for the import taxes.

"No room left for Mexico or for Canada. No, the tariffs, you know they're all set."

Trump, on his social media, further announced that the U.S. will be levying tariffs on crop purchases as well, starting from April 2nd.

Fruit, vegetable and nut imports have been climbing, leading to an agriculture trade deficit in the U.S.

As Trump continues to slap tariffs, the U.S. economy has been startled.

U.S. stocks plunged on Monday, with the Nasdaq dropping by around 3 percent and the Dow Jones losing nearly 2 percent.

Pundits say that as investment confidence has fallen following the tariff impositions, there are growing concerns for the U.S. market, especially regarding inflation.

"I think the tariff scenario is definitively an inflationary aspect to what can happen within the economy, in the market. Right now, what I'm seeing and hearing is a little bit of a stagflation concern."

The tariffs are raising concerns that tit-for-tat levies could eventually lead to a global trade war.

Ahn Sung-jin, Arirang News.