US lifts tariffs on certain Canadian products following pressure from Senator Susan Collins
The White House has lifted tariffs on key agricultural and food products from Maine, against a backdrop of trade tensions and the local election campaign
The White House has announced a change to the list of Canadian products subject to 50 per cent tariffs – in force since the end of August due to ‘discriminatory trade practices’ – a decision welcomed by Maine Senator Susan Collins.
The Republican politician, who is locked in a neck-and-neck race with her Democratic rival ahead of a possible re-election in early November, said she had secured “tariff exemptions for further products that are essential to Maine’s agri-food industry”.
The official statement
According to a document published on the US Presidency’s website, several items – including machinery, refrigeration equipment and packaging equipment – have been removed from the list and replaced with rugs and carpets, as well as certain types of valves.
The White House has confirmed the lifting of tariffs on certain products imported from Canada. The easing of restrictions will apply, amongst other things, to “plywood sheets, certain paper products, and specific refrigeration machinery and equipment”, the administration stated in a press release.
