Trump Threatens Canada with 50% Tariff on Aircraft
U.S. President Donald Trump threatened Canada on Thursday with imposing a 50% tariff on any aircraft sold in the United States, marking the latest move in his trade war with the neighboring country as tensions escalate with Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney.
This threat, which Trump announced on social media, followed a weekend warning of a 100% tariff on imported goods from Canada should it proceed with a planned trade agreement with China, despite Canada already having finalized that agreement. Trump did not specify when these tariffs would be imposed.
The American president stated that he is retaliating against Canada for refusing to certify aircraft from Gulfstream Aerospace, based in Savannah, Georgia, asserting that the U.S. would reciprocally revoke certification for all Canadian aircraft, including those manufactured by Canada’s largest airplane maker, Bombardier.
In his post, Trump wrote: “If this situation is not corrected immediately, for any reason, I will impose a 50% tariff on Canada for all aircraft sold in the United States,” adding that this action would include revoking certification for Bombardier’s Global Express business jets.
Data from aviation analytics firm Cirium indicates that there are 150 Global Express aircraft in service registered in the U.S., operated by 115 operators, while Bombardier and Gulfstream compete directly for market share.
For its part, Bombardier confirmed in a statement that its aircraft are fully certified under Federal Aviation Administration standards and that it is in contact with the Canadian government to address the issue, pointing out that thousands of private and commercial aircraft made in Canada fly daily in the U.S. The company expressed hope for a swift resolution to avoid significant impacts on air traffic and traveling public.
The Canadian government did not respond to requests for comment on Thursday evening.
