By Joe Light

President Donald Trump in a post on TruthSocial on Thursday said 25% tariffs on imports from Canada and Mexico will go into effect on March 4. The president wrote that imports from China will also face "an additional 10% Tariff on that date."

Trump in February had proposed -- and then suspended -- tariffs on Canada and Mexico, citing what he called insufficient efforts by the countries to prevent illegal immigrants and fentanyl from crossing the border.

"We cannot allow this scourge to continue to harm the USA, and therefore, until it stops, or is seriously limited, the proposed TARIFFS scheduled to go into effect on MARCH FOURTH will, indeed, go into effect, as scheduled," Trump said, referring to fentanyl.

Auto stocks including Ford Motor and General Motors fell after Trump's post. The companies could be hit hard since vehicles and auto parts cross the Canada-Mexico borders multiple times, potentially subjecting them to import duties.

The U.S. dollar rose against the Canadian dollar and the Mexican peso.

At least as of now, it appears unlikely Canada and Mexico will get another reprieve. A White House official told Barron's that Trump wants to see actual progress on illegal fentanyl-related metrics -- such as imports or drug-related deaths -- before agreeing to let up on the levies. That would make it all but impossible for Canadian and Mexican officials to prevent the tariffs, even if they were to make new promises to fight fentanyl in the next few days.

It's also unclear at this point how the 25% tariffs -- and the 20% total tariffs on China -- will interplay with a broader tariff review being done by the White House that is due to conclude in early April. Trump has said he wants to charge "reciprocal" tariffs on imports from countries that have levies on U.S. imports. The White House official said those factors are under review.

Trump's post was the latest twist on a monthlong back-and-forth that has left some investors grasping for clarity on the president's endgame. The White House originally outlined tariffs on Canada, Mexico, and China in early February, citing drugs and migration, only days later to postpone the Canada and Mexico levies for a month, citing promises by the countries to reinforce their borders. The China tariffs went into effect.

Earlier this week, Trump said in a press conference that the 25% tariffs would go into effect "on schedule" as the new March 4 deadline approached. Hours later, the White House said the implementation of the tariffs was still uncertain as the countries negotiated.

At the first meeting of his cabinet on Wednesday, Trump said tariffs would go into place on April 2, though it was unclear whether the president meant to refer to the 25% Mexico-Canada tariffs or the broader tariff plan.

The president's social media post on Thursday seems to clear that up, at least for now.

Write to Joe Light at joe.light@barrons.com

This content was created by Barron's, which is operated by Dow Jones & Co. Barron's is published independently from Dow Jones Newswires and The Wall Street Journal.

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February 27, 2025 10:19 ET (15:19 GMT)

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