Anoraks. National flags. Christmas ornaments. Thirty-six different types of plywood. The list of Canadian goods now subject to new 50% tariffs from the United States is long, sprawling, and seemingly assembled without much rhyme or reason.
The Trump administration imposed the tariffs, which took effect Saturday, after Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney called off nearly a month of trade negotiations with the United States. “They asked too much and offered too little,” Carney said.
He has pledged to retaliate dollar for dollar, with these new duties layering on top of tariffs of up to 50% that Trump had already placed on Canadian aluminum, steel and automobiles last year. Tariffs on lumber predate Trump’s return to office entirely, though he raised them further last year as well.
For Canadian companies reliant on U.S. customers, the new tariffs are a source of real anxiety. For the customs brokers and trade lawyers who advise them, they represent something closer to a windfall. For everyone else, the list is often simply baffling. According to the Trump administration, the affected goods amount to roughly $20 billion in Canadian exports, spread across three separate lists.
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A few clear targets emerge. Canada’s forestry industry, long locked in disputes with the U.S., took a significant hit, with wood products alone including three dozen distinct plywood categories. U.S. homebuilders have already warned there isn’t enough domestic plywood to fill the gap, meaning the tariffs could push up housing construction costs.
Alcohol also features prominently. The Trump administration has repeatedly criticized the fact that eight of Canada’s ten provinces still bar American wine and spirits from their government-run liquor stores and distribution systems, a policy that emerged in direct response to Trump’s earlier suggestion that Canada become the 51st U.S. state, along with tariffs he imposed in violation of the North American free trade agreement.
Some of the newly tariffed beverages sound distinctly unappetizing, including one item described as mixtures based on odor-producing substances containing 20 to 50 percent alcohol by weight that need only ethyl alcohol or water added to become a drinkable beverage, leaving unanswered why anyone would want to add more alcohol to something already half composed of it.
Dairy products made the list as well, though Canada’s system of production quotas, designed to protect domestic dairy farmers who primarily sell within Canada, may blunt the practical impact of the new U.S. duties.
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Clothing and textiles were also swept in. As in the U.S., much of Canada’s clothing manufacturing shifted overseas long ago, and some Canadian online retailers sell foreign-made goods to American shoppers. That offers no workaround, however, since the tariffs apply based on where a product ships from, not where it was actually made.
Few clothing categories escaped entirely. The list includes overcoats, anoraks, windbreakers, sleeveless jackets, cotton sweaters, T-shirts, car coats, capes, cloaks, tracksuits, suit jackets, blazers and dresses. Gloves and mittens made the cut too, unless they’re specifically designed for sports. Also included: national flags, canvas used for painting theater backdrops, tarpaulins, awnings and sun blinds.
Not every affected product comes from a major manufacturer, either; items like jewelry and honey often originate from small operations, sometimes run by a single person. Descriptions range from broad to oddly specific, including a listing for wood bedroom furniture “not designed for motor vehicle use,” a distinction that raises more questions than it answers.
The list has a playful, almost Scrooge-like streak running through it as well, covering Christmas ornaments not made of glass or wood, toys (including ride-on toys, though not bicycles), fishing rods, hockey sticks, ice skates, and generic festive or carnival entertainment items. Dog owners aren’t spared either, with leashes, collars, muzzles and harnesses all subject to the new tariffs.
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Curiously, several tariffed categories, including studio television cameras and smartphones, don’t appear to be manufactured in Canada at all.
More than anything, the list offers a strange window into lesser-known corners of Canadian industry, capturing companies that make or sell bookbinding machines, egg-grading equipment, marine buoys, derricks, sandblasting and steam-cleaning equipment, stills explicitly labeled “not for domestic purposes,” safes, and decorative “base metal statuettes.”
And perhaps the most delightfully specific entry of all: partial wigs, false beards, eyebrows and similar items made from synthetic textile materials.
