The Trump administration said on Thursday it would impose tariffs on metals imported from its closest allies, a move sure to provoke retaliation against businesses and consumers in the United States and to further strain diplomatic ties tested by President Trump’s combative approach.
Tariffs of 25 percent on steel and 10 percent on aluminum from the European Union, Canada and Mexico, which together supply nearly half of America’s imported metal, are to take effect at midnight Thursday, said Wilbur Ross, the commerce secretary.
Officials in Europe, Canada and Mexico responded quickly, denouncing the tariffs and warning of retaliation measures, some aimed at goods like pork, steel, bluejeans, bourbon and cheese from the parts of America where Mr. Trump enjoys his strongest political support.
“These tariffs are totally unacceptable,” Prime Minister Justin Trudeau of Canada said in a statement.
