00:00US President Donald Trump escalated his trade war against Canada, banning imports of alcohol
00:06and other goods and hiking tariffs elsewhere, with the dispute showing no sign of cooling.
00:12A range of Canadian products, from mattresses to motorboats and golf carts, will face a 50%
00:17surcharge from 15 September, according to Trump's executive order issued late on Tuesday.
00:23A separate import ban targeting various alcoholic beverages as well as dairy products such as whey
00:28will take effect on 29 September, under other executive orders issued simultaneously.
00:34Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney stood firm, acknowledging that loosening economic ties
00:39with the United States would come at a cost, but insisting the benefits would outweigh the
00:44pain in the long run. Canada's retaliatory tariffs came into effect earlier on Tuesday,
00:50applying to roughly $20 billion of Washington's exports, including steel and aluminum products
00:55and dairy goods like cheese, in response to Trump's initial 22 August levies.
01:01Carney stressed in a video address to the nation that Canada has everything it needs to pivot and
01:05prosper. Responding to their latest counter, Trump pledged to bar Canadian companies from
01:11securing US government contracts. He also threatened to cut short existing long-term deals,
01:17including removing Canadian origin products from the General Services Administration's
01:21multiple award schedules program. Those contracts, according to Trump, account for more than $50 billion a year.
