On Tuesday, as tariffs went into effect for most goods from Canada and Mexico, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce urged President Donald Trump to reconsider his move and bring a swift end to his policy.
Citing the International Emergency Economic Powers Act, Trump said imports coming into the United States from Canada and Mexico will be taxed at 25 percent starting March 4. Canadian energy products will be levied at a lower rate of 10 percent. In addition, the 10% tariff that Trump placed on Chinese imports in February will be doubled to 20 percent.
The Chamber said the economic policy would harm American businesses, workers and consumers.
“American families and businesses are struggling with high costs. It’s one of the top issues that they want policymakers to address,” Neil Bradley, Chief Policy Officer at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, said. “The Chamber supports the administration’s efforts to advance pro-growth policies like fewer regulations and less taxation that will grow our economy and expand opportunity; and to fix serious problems like our broken border and stopping the flow of fentanyl in this country. We also want to work together to keep costs down, but tariffs will only raise prices and increase the economic pain being felt by everyday Americans across the country. We urge reconsideration of this policy and a swift end to these tariffs.”
The Chamber, which represents nearly three million companies, 2,800 state and local chambers, 830 business associations and over 100 American Chambers of Commerce abroad, according to the U.S. Department of State, said businesses will be hit by the tariffs and force them to raise prices or risk going out of business.
“My company will feel an immediate, detrimental impact as a result of these tariffs,” Traci Tapani, co-president of Wyoming Machine, a sheet metal fabricator in Minnesota that relies on aluminum, much of which is imported from Canada. “The threats and uncertainty have made it hard to make business decisions, and these kinds of tariffs will make it extremely difficult for small businesses like mine to grow.”
The U.S. traded a total of $762.1 billion in goods with Canada in 2024, and $839.9 billion with Mexico in 2024. The two countries are America’s largest trading partner and trade with them supports more than 13 million American jobs.
“New tariffs on Canada and Mexico will put unnecessary pressure on Kentucky businesses and families,” Ashli Watts, president and CEO of the Kentucky Chamber of Commerce. “As a state that thrives on trade, we know firsthand how these policies disrupt supply chains, increase costs, and threaten jobs. We’ve seen it before—when Kentucky’s bourbon industry was hit by retaliatory tariffs, it lost nearly $600 million in exports. These policies have real consequences. We urge policymakers to support free enterprise and trade policies that allow Kentucky businesses to compete and grow. Our economy depends on it.”