As hours tick down to Canada's counter-tariffs against U.S., PMO says no talks are scheduled | CBC News

Prime Minister's Office says no plans for last-minute talks as trade war escalates

Just hours before Canada is set to hit the U.S. with counter-tariffs on $27.6 billion worth of goods, the two sides have no plans to negotiate a last-minute deal.

The Prime Minister's Office confirmed to CBC News that there are no calls scheduled between Prime Minister Mark Carney and U.S. President Donald Trump on Monday, and no plans for Canadian trade negotiators to return to the table ahead of the 12:01 a.m. ET Tuesday deadline. 

That's when the counter-tariffs are set to hit over 700 American products. 

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The tariffs, which range from 15 to 50 per cent, come as a tit-for-tat response to Trump's latest 50 per cent tariffs on Canadian goods that he imposed last month after trade talks collapsed on the cusp of a deal. 

The highest tariffs target industries hit hardest by tariffs from the U.S. They include steel, dairy and wood products. 

In an interview with CBC News last week, U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer warned about U.S. retaliation, suggesting the U.S. might consider bans on Canadian products.

"If there's further retaliation from the Canadian side, of course, we're not going to just sit down and take that. Our view is, 'Don't retaliate,'" he told CBC News chief political correspondent Rosemary Barton.

Asked by CBC News on Monday about Canada's choice to retaliate, former prime minister Jean Chrétien said he supported the counter-tariffs and that Canada might even need to consider taking additional steps.

The U.S. has "excluded oil, gas, electricity, potash. Why? Because they need it very badly. So perhaps one day we will have to impose an export tax," he said.

The Conservatives are urging the federal government to be "up front" with Canadians about the impact the retaliatory tariffs would have on families and businesses.