4:00 p.m.

U.S. increasing supply of domestic uranium, but critics warn tariffs on Canadian product could undermine energy security

- Matthew McClearn

The U.S. government’s efforts to have America supply more of its own uranium are off to a promising start – as long as you don’t look closely.

In a commentary released Wednesday, the U.S. Energy Information Administration declared that domestic uranium production last year reached its highest levels in six years, thanks largely to increased production at three facilities, including the White Mesa Mill in Utah.

The broader picture, though, is that U.S. uranium production remains dramatically lower than in the mid-2010s. For 2023 (the most recent year for which detailed reporting is available) the EIA noted that of the 51.6 million pounds of uranium oxide purchased by U.S. utilities as fuel their power reactors, 27 per cent came from Canada and 22 per cent from each of Austria and Kazakhstan. American sources accounted for just 5 per cent of U.S. deliveries that year.

In February, U.S. President Donald Trump established the National Energy Dominance Council to advise him on increasing production and distribution of “all forms of American energy.”

Observers, though, have warned that tariffs on Canadian uranium could undermine U.S. energy security and increase electricity rates paid by American consumers.

3:55 p.m.

Some Republicans fear a damaged economy will hand next election to Democrats

- Nathan VanderKlippe

Among Republicans outside Washington, the prospect of sweeping tariffs against their country’s most important trading partners has begun to raise concerns that if Mr. Trump is not careful, he could not merely damage the U.S. economy but destroy their party’s future grip on power.

If Mr. Trump ”is truly pushing tariffs for their own sake, and plans to go with this long-term, I think it jeopardizes, honestly, all the good he’s done in his presidency,” said Matt Rinaldi, a senior Republican in Texas who has chaired that state’s party apparatus.

“JD Vance will be the next president if Trump comes out with a good economy. It will be a Democrat president if Trump goes with a bad economy,” he said.

Mr. Rinaldi does not believe Mr. Trump intends to keep the trade measures in place permanently; instead, he sees them as a negotiating tactic intended to drive down barriers to the movement of U.S. goods into Canada and other countries.

For now, conservatives in the U.S. are giving Mr. Trump “the benefit of the doubt that this is exerting leverage on Canada to get a better free trade deal between both of the countries,” he said. But “everybody is in wait-and-see mode.”

3:25 p.m.

What’s the potential economic impact of Trump’s trade war?

- Mark Rendell

Trying to guess the economic impact of Donald Trump’s trade war is something of a fool’s errand. He has imposed tariffs, lifted them, then threatened more without providing details. With the trade policy of the world’s largest economy changing by the day, it’s hard to say where this is all going.

That doesn’t mean economists aren’t running models. A Bank of Canada estimate from February suggested that a full-blown trade war, where the U.S. imposes sweeping tariffs on trading partners who then retaliate, could cause an 8.5-per-cent drop in Canadian exports, a 12-per-cent decline in business investment and a 2-per-cent drop in consumer spending. That would lower Canadian output by 3 per cent compared with a non-tariff scenario over the next two years, putting the economy in a shallow recession. Bay Street estimates have been roughly in the same ballpark.

Running models and forecasting aren’t the same. Bank of Canada Governor Tiff Macklem said last month that the bank may publish several forecasts in its April Monetary Policy Report, rather than a central scenario, given the “broader than usual range of possible outcomes.”

It’s fair to say a prolonged trade war would be a “stagflation” shock. Tariffs and retaliation would weigh on economic growth and increase unemployment, but also push up consumer prices. That’s bad news for Canadians and tough for the central bank to navigate.

3:05 p.m.

Car sales in Canada rise as trade war escalates

- Eric Atkins

Canadians are rushing to car dealerships as the tariff war escalates. Consultancy DesRosiers Automotive says an estimated 185,000 vehicles were sold in March, an 11-per-cent increase over the same month last year.

Prime Minister Mark Carney has threatened to hit the U.S. with retaliatory tariffs that might drive up the price of U.S.-made automobiles.

Some car buyers are not waiting to find out.

DesRosiers says March’s sales were the highest for that month since 2018 and, if the rush continues, will put seasonally adjusted annual sales at just over two million.

U.S. tariffs of 25 per cent on imported cars will begin April 3. Canadian-made vehicles will be taxed at a lower rate, based on their U.S. content, and similar tariffs on auto parts are expected soon. That’s all on top of U.S. tariffs on aluminum and steel – raw material for car parts - and goods that fall outside the continental free trade agreement.

Chris Murray of ATB Capital Markets recently told The Globe and Mail that the price of a car in Canada could go up by as much as $5,000 once all the layers and countermeasures are added in.

3:00 p.m.

Fentanyl coming into the U.S. from Canada an ‘invented emergency’, U.S. Senator Tim Kaine says

- Kathryn Blaze Baum

U.S. Senator Tim Kaine’s argument to terminate the fentanyl emergency that the Trump administration declared at the northern border can be summed up like so: It’s an “invented emergency.”

That’s what he told his colleagues on the Senate floor Wednesday, speaking ahead of a vote in the Republican-majority chamber to end the state of emergency.

He said the mechanism the White House used to unilaterally impose tariffs and bypass Congress - the declaration of a state of emergency that unlocks sweeping executive powers, including the ability to introduce import taxes - is based on a false premise.

“Is fentanyl a problem? Yes. Is it an emergency? Yes,” he said. “But fentanyl is not a Canadian emergency … [It’s] an invented emergency.”

Mr. Kaine pointed out that more than 21,000 pounds of fentanyl was seized at the southern border with Mexico last fiscal year; at the northern border, 43 pounds.

“There’s a new report that’s just coming out as I’m speaking on the floor from The Globe and Mail, saying even these estimates are high,” Mr. Kaine said. He was referring to new data, released to The Globe through freedom-of-information laws, that shows that only about one-tenth of 1 per cent of fentanyl seizures at the northern border have actually been positively attributed to Canada by the U.S. border agency.

2:30 p.m.

Canadian and U.S. stocks advance ahead of tariff announcement

– Reuters

U.S. stock indexes maintained gains in afternoon trading, rebounding from morning declines.

At 1:55 p.m. ET, the S&P 500 had risen 27.29 points, or 0.48 per cent, while the Nasdaq Composite had gained 138.13 points, or 0.79 per cent. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was up by 141.60 points, or 0.34 per cent.

The S&P/TSX Composite Index also advanced in afternoon trading, gaining 130 points, or just over 0.5%, as of 2:37 p.m. ET.

Tesla jumped 5.4 per cent, reversing early declines after Politico reported that Trump has told members of his Cabinet and other close contacts that his billionaire ally Elon Musk will soon step back from his government role.

In early trade, Tesla fell as much as 6.4 per cent after the EV maker reported a 13 per cent drop in first-quarter deliveries. Its advances also helped the consumer discretionary index to a 2.1 per cent increase, making it the best performing of the 11 S&P sectors.

Among other Magnificent Seven names, Amazon.com rose 2.3 per cent after The New York Times reported it was bidding for short video platform TikTok.

2:25 p.m.

Canadian workers ‘need strong leadership’ in face of tariffs, Canadian Labour Congress says

- Emily Haws

Canadian Labour Congress president Bea Bruske called the April election an “absolute turning point” for Canadian workers and said they want to know politicians have their backs amidst the uncertainty of tariffs.

“Our message to all politicians is clear, this is not the time for austerity,” she said. “Canadian workers need strong leadership. We need a real plan that stands up for workers, that protects our jobs, that safeguards our livelihoods and our communities.”

While she said she supports the Liberal and NDP approach to put any counter-tariff revenues back into supports for workers, she has not heard the same approach from the Conservatives.

The CLC is made up of 51 different unions and it will not endorse anyone during this election campaign, Ms. Bruske said. She added that the CLC is in touch with U.S. labour counterparts.

2:15 p.m.

What economic impact have tariffs had so far?

- Mark Rendell

It’s too early to see much of the impact of the tariffs in the hard data. However, surveys that capture consumer and business sentiment on both sides of the border suggest that uncertainty created by Donald Trump’s trade war is weighing on economic activity.

A Bank of Canada survey in February found that consumers are becoming worried about their jobs and trimming spending plans while companies are putting a freeze on hiring and large investments. The Conference Board of Canada’s index of consumer confidence fell to a record low in the first half of March. South of the border, the March U.S. Conference Board survey of consumer confidence saw future expectations sink to the worst level in 12 years.

“It’s peak uncertainty right now,” Jean-François Perrault, chief economist at Bank of Nova Scotia, said in an interview on Tuesday, noting that consumers and businesses are holding off on big purchases or investments “until they know what the rules of the game are.”

One area we can see a direct impact is in the trade data. Canadian exports to the U.S jumped 7.5 per cent to a record high in January, as companies raced to get ahead of the impending tariffs. That front-loading will boost Canadian GDP numbers in the near-term, but suggest a slump is coming in Q2.

2:05 p.m.

Amid tariff backlash, Canada’s two major airlines are reporting steep drops in bookings for U.S. flights

- Eric Atkins

Air Canada said as of mid-March, the airline industry’s transborder bookings for the next six months are down by 10 per cent, year over year, and by a similar amount at the airline itself. Calgary-based WestJet Airlines’ cross-border seat sales are down by 25 per cent, year to date, spokesman Josh Yeats says.

OAG, a U.K.-based aviation data company, last week said in a report that seat sales between Canada and the U.S. are down by 70 per cent in every month between April and September, compared with the same period a year ago. OAG said Canadian airlines are removing capacity or flights amid the drop in demand, but not yet at a pace that matches the plunge in seat bookings.

More than 320,000 seats have been removed by airlines flying to the U.S. from Canada through the end of October. The cuts are deepest – 3.5 per cent - in the peak travel season of July and August, OAG said.

However, Air Canada and WestJet Airlines said the OAG figures do not match their own.

“While we have experienced a softening in the transborder market – and have shifted a limited amount of capacity to adapt to it as previously announced – the decline Air Canada has experienced is not by any means of the magnitude cited” by OAG, Air Canada said in a statement.

WestJet’s Mr. Yeats said customers are switching to destinations other than the U.S.

1:36 p.m.

U.K. prepared to drop tax that multinationals pay

– Paul Waldie

There have been reports in Britain that the government is prepared to reduce or eliminate its digital services tax in return for lower U.S. tariffs.

The DST was introduced in 2020 to tackle tax avoidance by multinational corporations. It was designed to make big tech companies that aren’t headquartered in the U.K. – such as Meta, Amazon and Apple – pay taxes on the revenues they generate from their British users. The tax applies to companies that have more than £500-million ($929-million) in global revenue and generate more than £25-million in the U.K.

The rate was set at 2 per cent and pulls in some £800-million a year for the government.

One option under consideration, according to The Guardian, is for the tax to be lowered and broadened to include more companies from other countries, which could address arguments from the White House that the tax applies mainly to U.S. firms.

1:20 p.m.

No instructions sent to border yet, so tariffs can’t be enforced, says U.S. lawyer

– Nathan VanderKlippe

The United States has not yet given any indication that it will impose its promised 25-per cent tariff on most Canadian goods, even though a month-long suspension of that tariff expires today.

But the April 2 date for reinstating the 25-per-cent fentanyl-related tariff was “never actually put in any of the documents,” said Dan Ujczo, an international trade lawyer who is senior counsel at Thompson Hine in Columbus, Ohio.

“Everybody has been operating on April 2” as an assumption of when those tariffs would come back into place, he said. “But nobody really knows what that means.”

To enforce tariffs, U.S. Customs and Border Protection issues instructions through its Cargo Systems Messaging Service. As of midday Wednesday, no such instruction had been issued, he said.

Until such a notice is received, “parties can continue to claim the USMCA treatment,” which ensures free trade for most goods traded in North America, Mr. Ujczo said.

12:58 p.m.

U.S. offering ‘good economic agreement’ with U.K., says Chancellor

– Paul Waldie

Britain’s Chancellor of the Exchequer, Rachel Reeves, has told a parliamentary committee that the government will not “rush into any response” to U.S. President Donald Trump’s tariffs.

“We are going to approach this in a clear-headed way,” she told MPs on the House of Commons Treasury Committee. Ms. Reeves said she met with major British exporters Wednesday and they agreed that they “don’t want the government to rush into any response.”

“The prize on offer is a good economic agreement between us and the United States. We won’t do anything to put that in jeopardy. We’re not going to rush into action to get a quick headline. We are focused on doing what is right for our country, businesses operating here and working people here.”

12:23 p.m.

New fentanyl data shows Canada’s minor impact on U.S. drug crisis

– Kathryn Blaze Baum and Mahima Singh

Barely more than one-10th of 1 per cent of fentanyl seizures at the northern border have been positively attributed to Canada by the United States border agency, according to new data released to The Globe and Mail.

The figures reveal that border officials track the origin of the drugs they seize in what they call the northern border region. In fiscal 2024, the data show that 99.87 per cent of the fentanyl they recovered was linked to either Mexico or the United States, or had unknown origins. Fentanyl identified as coming from Canada amounted to 0.74 pounds – or 0.13 per cent. The data exclude seizures still under investigation, including at least one case U.S. authorities have connected to Canada.

The figures call into question the Trump administration’s basis for declaring a national emergency over fentanyl “pouring” across the northern border, which unlocked special powers to unilaterally impose tariffs on Canadian goods, and whether the information was communicated to the White House. It also casts yet more doubt on the degree to which Canadian fentanyl is a culprit in the U.S. toxic drug crisis.

In justifying the tariffs, the White House has repeatedly cited U.S. Customs and Border Protection data to assert that 43 pounds of fentanyl was seized at the northern border last fiscal year, accusing Canada of being responsible for a “massive 2050% increase” compared with the year prior.

12:23 p.m.

How the NDP says it’ll handle the trade war

– The Canadian Press

NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh says his party has a plan to safeguard Canada from Donald Trump’s trade war as the U.S. President prepares to roll out new tariffs.

Speaking in Winnipeg today, Mr. Singh cited previously announced NDP proposals such as increasing EI payments, building an east-to-west electricity grid and putting money collected through retaliatory tariffs into affected sectors such as steel and auto manufacturing.

He has also previously made affordability promises in his tariff plan, such as removing the GST on “essentials” like home heating, premade grocery store meals and children’s clothes, capping grocery prices on staples and expanding health programs such as dental care.

12:18 p.m.

Doug Ford says ‘let’s get back to a USCA deal’

– Jeff Gray

Ontario Premier Doug Ford is sticking to his position that Mexico should be excluded from any trade talks between Canada and the U.S., even as Prime Minister Mark Carney speaks with Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum and says his preference is for a trilateral renegotiation of the continental free trade deal.

Since last November, Mr. Ford has repeatedly accused Mexico of being a “back door” for Chinese products, something some in the U.S. auto industry and the Trump administration have raised concerns about.

In his appearance on CNBC’s Squawk Box on Wednesday, Mr. Ford repeated his frequent talking point about Mexico, saying Canada should enter into talks on a U.S-Canada deal, instead of the existing United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement.

“I think we need to sit down and let’s get back to a ‘USCA’ deal, instead of a USMCA deal, because Mexico’s bringing in cheap parts from China, slapping on a made-in-Mexico sticker and costing American and Canadian jobs.”

11:41 a.m.

Democrat Sen. Chuck Schumer: Tariffs are a ‘financial gut punch’ for families

– Nathan VanderKlippe

Donald Trump’s “Liberation Day” amounts to “a sledgehammer to the American economy,” Democratic Senator Chuck Schumer said.

Mr. Schumer, the Senate minority leader, issued a sweeping indictment of Trump’s reciprocal tariff plans, saying they could add thousands of dollars to the cost of living for the average American family.

“With the flick of a pen, Donald Trump is set to unleash the most reckless tsunami of tariffs Americans have seen in over half a century,” Mr. Schumer said. ”Prices will rise on virtually every kind of product.”

He called the trade measures “a financial gut punch” for families.

Mr. Schumer is among the Democrats backing a resolution to cancel the national emergency declaration issued by the White House as the basis for 25-per-cent tariffs on most goods from Canada and Mexico.

It remains unclear whether that resolution will pass the Senate. On Wednesday, one of its potential Republican backers, Iowa Senator Chuck Grassley, said he would not support it.

“I’m going to vote no,” he told news website Semafor. “Partly because it’s not just a trade issue and partly I see it as nothing but to bring up something to obstruct what Trump’s doing on tariffs to get attention away from that.”

11:03 a.m.

Poilievre on why he hasn’t built relations with Trump

– Steven Chase

Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre says he has not tried to build relations with the Trump White House because he believes in the rule of “one Prime Minister at a time.” He was also asked if he has enlisted the help of Conservative candidate Jamil Jivani, a friend of Vice-President JD Vance, but did not say.

11:00 a.m.

Remind me, what’s a tariff again?

– Globe staff

A tariff is a fee, similar to a tax, that a government charges to a domestic importer for bringing foreign goods into the country’s market. Tariffs are usually placed on certain categories of products, such as dairy or aluminum, to protect a domestic industry.

That’s because a tariff makes it harder for foreign players to compete, making their products more expensive and less attractive than domestic ones, since importers may have to pass on the extra costs to consumers by raising prices.

Tariffs are usually expressed as a percentage of a product’s value. So, for example, if the U.S. were to impose a 25-per-cent tariff on steel, an American importer who wants to bring in US$1-million worth of steel will have to pay US$250,000 to the U.S. government.

The importer may ask the Canadian steel producer to lower their prices and absorb some of the tariff, but a significant portion of the levy would be passed on to steel-consuming industries, such as manufacturers of power tools, who could in turn raise their retail prices, ultimately passing on the burden of the tariff to consumers.

10:53 a.m.

Doug Ford makes case against tariffs on U.S. cable news

– Jeff Gray and Laura Stone

Ontario Premier Doug Ford, who has regularly taken to U.S. media to make his case against Donald Trump’s tariffs, was at it again Wednesday morning.

On CNBC’s Squawk Box, he was asked whether Canada would remove all its “original tariffs,” an apparent reference to trade irritants the Trump administration has identified, such as the supply management system for dairy products.

Mr. Ford appeared to misinterpret the question, answering that Canada would – but clearly referring only to Ottawa’s retaliatory tariffs.

Speaking to Wolf Blitzer on CNN’s The Situation Room, Mr. Ford repeated his assertion that tariffs will make life more expensive for Americans by driving up the cost of houses, autos and pharmaceuticals.

“These tariffs are nothing but a tax on Americans,” Mr. Ford said. “President Trump calls it ‘Liberation Day.’ I call it ‘Termination Day’ because a lot of people are going to be terminated from their jobs.”

He said the tariffs are already wreaking economic havoc on North America.

“Consumer confidence is down. Investment is stalled. Inflation is happening. The markets are tumbling and they’re going to tumble today,” he said.

10:49 a.m.

What we know so far about the ‘reciprocal’ tariff plan

– Mark Rendell

The “reciprocal” tariffs to be announced this afternoon are supposed to be the centrepiece of Donald Trump’s “America First” trade agenda and apply to all countries. The plan, however, remains hazy.

U.S. media reported Tuesday evening that the Trump administration was still debating whether to proceed with a flat-rate tariff on all trading partners, a tiered system that would put countries in various categories or a country-by-country system.

Mr. Trump and his officials had previously suggested they favoured a country-by-country approach, with the goal of matching tariffs and trade barriers that other countries place on U.S. goods.

A key question is how the administration would come up with a number that supposedly corresponds to other countries’ trade barriers. Officials have said they will include both tariffs and non-tariff grievances.

In Canada’s case, the average tariff rate on U.S. goods is less than 2 per cent. But U.S. officials have suggested they will include the federal goods and services tax, digital services tax and Canada’s supply-management system when determining a reciprocal rate for Canada. All this could be an academic exercise if the administration proceeds with a flat rate.

10:39 a.m.

What tariffs are already in place?

– Mark Rendell

1. Blanket tariffs on Canada and Mexico: On March 4, the U.S. put 25-per-cent tariffs on imports from Canada and Mexico, with a 10-per-cent levy for energy products, critical minerals and potash – ostensibly to push both countries to address fentanyl trafficking and illegal migration. Two days later, President Donald Trump exempted products that enter the U.S. in compliance with the continental free trade agreement. This means many, but not all, products will continue to cross the borders tariff-free or at a low tariff rate for now. Mr. Trump said the reprieve would last for one month, although there is no end date in his executive order and the future of the exemption is unclear.
2. Steel and aluminum: The U.S has placed 25-per-cent tariffs on steel and aluminum imports, which apply to both the raw material and finished metal products such as cans and barbecue grills.
3. Lumber: Since 2017, the U.S. has imposed countervailing and anti-dumping duties on Canadian softwood lumber. These duties currently stand at around 14.5 per cent but are set to double by the end of the year. Mr. Trump has launched an investigation that could see additional tariffs placed on Canadian forestry products.
4. Auto tariffs (almost): Mr. Trump announced last week that he would place 25-per-cent tariffs on cars, light trucks and many auto parts, starting April 3. Canada and Mexico are being treated slightly more leniently. Cars produced in compliance with the continental free trade agreement will only be hit with tariffs on the value of the non-U.S. components. Auto parts from Canada and Mexico will continue to trade tariff-free while Washington develops a plan for calculating U.S. content.

10:33 a.m.

How Canadian are American cars?

– Matthew McClearn

Canada plays a crucial role in manufacturing for the U.S. auto industry, but data about parts and components are categorized as “Canada-U.S.,” making it difficult to tell what is made where.

Data published by the U.S. government list roughly 360

vehicles for sale from the 2025 model year. Every single one

contains some proportion of its components (by value)

originating outside North America, varying from one-fifth

to the entire vehicle. President Donald Trump argues the

decline in U.S.-manufactured vehicles “jeopardizes our

domestic industrial base and national security.”

Per cent content of select cars:

Final assembly: Canada, Japan

Honda Civic

(four door)

Honda CR-V

(FW drive)

Matt Mcclearn and john sopinski/the globe and mail

Source: National Highway Traffic Safety Administration

photos: manufacturers

Data published by the U.S. government list roughly 360

vehicles for sale from the 2025 model year. Every single one

contains some proportion of its components (by value)

originating outside North America, varying from one-fifth

to the entire vehicle. President Donald Trump argues the

decline in U.S.-manufactured vehicles “jeopardizes our

domestic industrial base and national security.”

Per cent content of select cars:

Final assembly: Canada, Japan

Honda Civic

(four door)

Honda CR-V

(FW drive)

Matt Mcclearn and john sopinski/the globe and mail

Source: National Highway Traffic Safety Administration

photos: manufacturers

Data published by the U.S. government list roughly 360 vehicles for sale from the 2025 model year. Every single one contains some proportion of its components (by value) originating outside North America, varying from one-fifth to the entire vehicle. President Donald Trump argues the decline in U.S.-manufactured vehicles “jeopardizes our domestic industrial base and national security.”

Per cent content of select cars:

Final assembly: Canada, Japan

Honda Civic

(four door)

Honda CR-V

(FW drive)

Matt Mcclearn and john sopinski/the globe and mail

Source: National Highway Traffic Safety Administration photos: manufacturers

U.S. President Donald Trump announced 25-per-cent tariffs on auto imports on March 26 but stipulated that they may not be applied to the whole value a vehicle. For vehicles qualifying for preferential treatment under the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement, the U.S. Secretary of Commerce may decide to apply the tariff solely to their non-U.S. content.

But there’s a big catch: If U.S. Customs and Border Protection determines that the importer’s declared value of non-U.S. content is inaccurate, a 25-per-cent tariff will be applied to the whole vehicle.

10:08 a.m.

Poilievre says Canada should impose retaliatory tariffs

– Steven Chase

Pierre Poilievre tells a Toronto crowd Wednesday morning that Canada’s immediate response to Donald Trump’s tariffs must be retaliatory levies and government support to protect jobs threatened by Washington.

The Conservative Leader said that if he were to become prime minister he would propose to Mr. Trump that both sides pause tariffs and launch an early renegotiation of the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement, which is up for renewal in 2026.

He said a red line in future trade talks would include supply management and control over Canadian natural resources and water.

And he said he would demand that Mr. Trump stop the flow of illegal guns into Canada from the United States.

10:03 a.m.

Do Senate Dems have enough votes to end Trump’s national emergency?

- Nathan VanderKlippe

Do Senate Democrats have enough votes to pass a resolution today ending Donald Trump’s national emergency declaration for fentanyl from Canada?

Mr. Trump seems to believe they do.

The Democrats need just four Republican votes to pass the resolution, which would dismiss the basis for Mr. Trump’s 25-per-cent tariffs on most goods from Canada, with a 10-per-cent levy on energy products and potash.

Early Wednesday morning, Mr. Trump posted to social media a strong condemnation of four Republican senators — Mitch McConnell, Lisa Murkowski, Susan Collins and Rand Paul — saying they “will hopefully get on the Republican bandwagon, for a change, and fight the Democrats wild and flagrant push to not penalize Canada for the sale, into our Country, of large amounts of Fentanyl, by Tariffing the value of this horrible and deadly drug in order to make it more costly to distribute and buy.”

Ms. Murkowski, Ms. Collins and Mr. Paul have all indicated they will support the resolution.

Mr. McConnell’s office declined comment Wednesday morning, telling The Globe and Mail it would provide further information at a later time.

But Mr. Trump’s post to Truth Social suggests Mr. McConnell, who in the past has demonstrated a willingness to challenge the President, is prepared to support the resolution.

Its passage would mark a condemnation of Mr. Trump’s policies from those within his own party, a day after voters in Wisconsin rejected a state Supreme Court candidate backed by the White House and its most active fundraiser, billionaire Elon Musk.

It remains unlikely, however, that the resolution — even if it passes the Senate — will achieve anything. The House of Representatives has made it difficult for such a resolution to receive a hearing, and the President can veto any legislation without two-thirds support.

Republican supporters of the resolution, Mr. Trump argued in his post, “are playing with the lives of the American people, and right into the hands of the Radical Left Democrats and Drug Cartels. The Senate Bill is just a ploy of the Dems to show and expose the weakness of certain Republicans, namely these four, in that it is not going anywhere because the House will never approve it and I, as your President, will never sign it.”

9:55 a.m.

Carney to hold meetings with business and labour leaders

– Robert Fife

Prime Minister Mark Carney will hold a virtual meeting at 3 p.m. of the Council on Canada-U.S. Relations, which comprises business and labour leaders and prominent Canadians. They have been advising the federal government on how to respond to U.S. President Donald Trump’s trade war against Canada.

At 5:30 p.m., Mr. Carney will chair a meeting of the cabinet committee on Canada-U.S. Relations and National Security. The cabinet will decide what countermeasures Ottawa will impose on the United States.

Two members of the advisory council — David MacNaughton, Canada’s former envoy to Washington, and Senator Hassan Yussuff, a former Canadian Labour Congress president – have told The Globe and Mail that Ottawa won’t impose retaliatory tariffs on most U.S. food and other basic necessities, which could drive up the cost of living for Canadians, or on components that are essential to avoiding job losses in key sectors of the economy.

In Winnipeg Tuesday, Mr. Carney reiterated what he told Mr. Trump last Friday, that “we will put in place some retaliatory measures if there are additional measures put against Canada.”

Mr. Carney also spoke with Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum Tuesday about how to fight the trade war and ways to increase trade between Canada and Mexico.

9:49 a.m.

What has Canada already placed retaliatory tariffs on?

– Mark Rendell

Canada has retaliated by placing its own tariffs on some $60-billion worth of U.S. goods, in two tranches.

In response to the March 4 blanket tariffs, Canada imposed 25-per-cent tariffs on around $30-billion worth of U.S. goods, including orange juice, alcohol, appliances, clothing and motorcycles, among other products. Ottawa said it would add tariffs to another $125-billion worth of goods in 21 days if the U.S. did not reverse course. The Canadian government paused this second threat after Mr. Trump granted the temporary exemption for USMCA-compliant goods, but the initial tariffs on $30-billion worth of goods remain in place.

Canada then imposed 25-per-cent tariffs on an additional $29.8-billion worth of U.S. goods in response to the steel and aluminum tariffs. These levies mostly apply dollar for dollar to U.S. metal products, but also hit other goods including tools, computers and servers, display monitors and sports equipment.

Provincial and municipal governments have responded in their own ways, including removing alcohol from liquor store shelves and changing procurement policies to penalize U.S. companies, among other measures.

9:30 a.m.

The impact for Northern Ireland

– Paul Waldie

U.S. tariffs will complicate life for a lot of companies around the world but spare a thought for businesses in Northern Ireland where Brexit adds another layer of complexity.

Because of Brexit and the Irish border, Northern Ireland exists in a kind of alternative universe, tied to both the European Union and Britain.

Under a post-Brexit deal struck between London and Brussels, Northern Ireland adheres to EU regulations for goods moving back and forth with Ireland, an EU member. The province follows U.K. rules for everything moving between Northern Ireland and the rest of Britain.

Things get tricky if the U.S. imposes tariffs on the EU but not the U.K. Or if the EU retaliates with counter tariffs but the U.K. does not.

Northern Ireland companies bringing in goods from the U.S. will have to keep track of where the goods are headed — to Ireland or the U.K. —to know what tariff applies. And exporters to the U.S. will have to make sure American customs officers understand where the goods originated — in the U.K. or the EU.

For now, no one in the U.K. is sure how all this will work.

9:24 a.m.

On the ground in London

– Paul Waldie

Paul Waldie here from London. I’m The Globe’s Europe correspondent and I’m watching the very different strategies Britain and the European Union have been employing in their response to President Donald Trump’s tariff threats.

British officials are hoping that Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s quiet diplomacy will shield the U.K. from the worst of Mr. Trump’s tariffs and lead to a trade deal. Downing Street has not announced plans for retaliatory tariffs and Mr. Starmer has promised a “calm approach.” He has also been keen to point out that the U.S. has a trade surplus with the U.K.

Brussels has been far more assertive. “Europe holds a lot of cards,” European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen told the European Parliament on Tuesday. She added that the EU has “a strong plan to retaliate and we will use it.”

Apr. 1

Canada promises retaliatory tariffs in response to any U.S. levies

- Nathan VanderKlippe, Nojoud Al Mallees and Emma Graney

Prime Minister Mark Carney has promised retaliatory tariffs in response to any U.S. levies that target Canada on April 2, a message that he delivered after a phone call with Mr. Trump last week.

Mr. Carney, running as Liberal Leader in the April 28 federal election, has previously noted that the federal government has developed another round of potential tariffs that could target as much as $125-billion worth of American goods.

Canada and the United States have agreed to begin comprehensive negotiations on a new economic and security relationship following next month’s election.