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Trump pauses 50% Canada tariffs hours before deadline as he claims a deal

Published 07:53 19 Aug 2026 BST

Updated 06:48 19 Aug 2026 BST

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Trump pauses 50% Canada tariffs hours before deadline as he claims a deal

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With an AI-generated image of himself hauling a pipe from the ground

Donald Trump has paused the 50 per cent Canada tariffs due to take effect on Wednesday morning.

The US president announced a three-day delay on Truth Social less than two hours before the levy was set to hit nearly $20bn (C$28bn) of Canadian imports.

"I have paused the 50% Tariffs against Canada, that were scheduled to kick in tomorrow morning for a three day period, based on the fact that Canada and the U.S.A., subject to the finalization of documents, have a DEAL!", the president wrote.

What the Canada tariffs would have hit

The levy covered a wide array of Canadian goods, with a 19 August deadline.

Trump and Mark Carney spoke twice this week, with negotiators in intense talks since July, according to BBC News.

The two sides had been at an impasse over US tariffs on autos and Canadian provinces banning American liquor sales.

Trump also suggested a final deal could revive Keystone XL, the 1,200-mile pipeline intended to move up to 830,000 barrels of crude a day from Alberta to Nebraska, blocked by both the Obama and Biden administrations.

"The great Keystone XL Pipeline, long ago killed by Sleepy Joe Biden, may be awoken from the grave!", he wrote, before posting an apparently AI-generated image of himself hauling a pipe from the ground beside a tombstone reading "BURIED BY BIDEN".

Not for the first time the president has trailed a breakthrough before the paperwork exists, after Trump's recent claim of an agreement over Gaza.

Negotiators now have three days to turn a Truth Social post into a signed document.