Trump threatens further tariffs as EU, Canada retaliate for those already in place

global trade war with further tariffs on European Union goods, as major U.S. trading partners said they would retaliate for trade barriers already erected by the U.S. president.

Just hours after Trump's 25% duties on all U.S. steel and aluminum imports took effect, Trump said he would impose additional penalties if the EU follows through with its plan to enact counter tariffs on some U.S. goods next month. «Whatever they charge us, we're charging them,» Trump told reporters at the White House.

Trump's hyper-focus on tariffs has rattled investor, consumer and business confidence and raised recession fears. He also has frayed relations with Canada, a close ally and major trading partner, by repeatedly threatening to annex the neighboring country.

Canada, the biggest foreign supplier of steel and aluminum to the United States, announced 25% retaliatory tariffs on those metals along with computers, sports equipment and other products worth $20 billion in total. Canada has already imposed tariffs worth a similar amount on U.S. goods in response to broader tariffs by Trump.

«We will not stand idly by while our iconic steel and aluminum industries are being unfairly targeted,» Canada's Finance Minister Dominic LeBlanc said.

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Canada's central bank also cut interest rates to prepare for economic disruption.

Trump's action to bulk up protections for American steel and aluminum producers restores effective tariffs of 25% on all imports and extends the duties to hundreds of downstream products, from nuts and bolts to bulldozer blades and soda cans.

U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick said Trump would impose trade protections on copper as well.

A Reuters/Ipsos poll found 57% of Americans think Trump is being