Fact-checking Donald Trump's claims about Canada in his global tariff speech

Standing successful the Rose Garden connected Wednesday day to unveil his caller reciprocal tariffs, U.S. President Donald Trump again falsely claimed that the U.S. subsidizes Canada by hundreds of billions of dollars each twelvemonth and misrepresented Canada's tariffs connected U.S. dairy products.

"We subsidize a batch of countries and support them going and support them successful business," Trump said. "In the lawsuit of Mexico, it's $300 billion. In the lawsuit of Canada, it's adjacent to $200 billion a year."

That assertion — which Trump has routinely made going arsenic acold backmost arsenic December — is untrue successful aggregate ways. What the U.S. president was referring to is his country's commercialized shortage with Canada, meaning Canada exports much to the United States than the U.S. exports to Canada.

WATCH | Trump announces planetary reciprocal tariffs, spares Canada:

According to the Office of the United States Trade Representative, The U.S. goods commercialized shortage with Canada was $63.3 cardinal successful 2024, down from $64 cardinal successful 2023. That's acold little than Trump claimed connected Wednesday.

There's different origin to consider: the terms of energy. According to Statistics Canada, vigor exports specified arsenic oil, earthy state and energy marque up astir one-third of the goods Canada sent southbound past year.

Experts person antecedently told CBC News the size of the U.S. commercialized shortage with Canada is mostly a relation of lipid prices. If lipid prices spell down the shortage shrinks, and vice versa if lipid prices rise. They besides accidental commercialized deficits are not a signifier of subsidy.

Remove energy, experts told CBC News, and it's really Canada that has the commercialized deficit.

Canada's tariffs connected U.S. dairy

During his speech, Trump besides claimed Canada imposes a "250 to 300 per cent tariff connected galore of our dairy products. They bash the archetypal tin of milk, the archetypal carton of beverage astatine a precise debased terms but aft that it gets bad."

"Take a look astatine what happens down the road when you look a small bit, it's not a beauteous picture," Trump added. "And it's not fair. It's not just to our farmers, it's not just to our country."

WATCH | Breaking down Trump's claims astir Canada's dairy tariffs:

His assertion is not wholly true. Those precocious tariffs connected U.S. dairy lone use if exports transcend acceptable quotas. Below the quotas, the U.S. dairy products participate tariff-free due to the fact that of the Canada-United States-Mexico Agreement (CUSMA), according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

According to the International Dairy Foods Association, the U.S. has ne'er travel adjacent to exceeding its quotas. But the relation argues it's "because Canada has erected assorted protectionist measures that alert successful the look of their commercialized obligations made nether [CUSMA]."

Where is Canada present with tariffs?

Despite Trump's grievances connected Wednesday, the White House said determination volition beryllium nary much across-the-board levies applied to Canada than what has antecedently been announced.

Trump said nevertheless that helium is going up with a 25 per cent tariff connected "all foreign-made" automobiles arsenic of midnight Wednesday, which could person terrible implications for the Canadian car sector.

The White House said that tariff complaint volition use to Canadian-made rider vehicles, but determination is simply a caveat — it volition lone beryllium levied connected the worth of each non-U.S. components in that automobile.

On Thursday morning, Prime Minister Mark Carney announced Canada is retaliating against Trump's latest determination with a 25 per cent tariff connected vehicles imported from the U.S. that are not CUSMA-compliant. Mexico volition not beryllium impacted.

In March, Trump slapped 25 per cent tariffs connected Canadian steel, aluminum and goods that are not CUSMA-compliant. He besides imposed 10 per cent tariffs connected vigor products under CUSMA, arsenic good as potash not covered by the commercialized agreement.

Canada placed retaliatory tariffs connected astir $60 cardinal worthy of U.S. goods successful effect to Trump's moves past month.