On Wednesday he said he would temporarily spare carmakers from 25% import taxes just a day after they came into effect – after pleas from Ford, General Motors and Stellantis, which have supply chains that stretch across North America. And on Thursday, he gave a one-month respite from 25-percent tariffs for goods covered under North America's free trade agreement, the US-Mexico-Canada agreement (USMCA), which Trump signed during his first term.
A White House official admitted about 50% of US imports from Mexico and 62% from Canada could still face tariffs. Those proportions could change as firms change their practices in response to the order.
Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum thanked Trump for the move, while Dominic LeBlanc, Canada's finance minister said the country would in turn hold off on its threatened second round of retaliatory tariffs on US products.
This month-to-month threat of tariffs followed by last-minute reprieves is beginning to show Trump as the boy who cries wolf!
Sure, the levy threat may compel some affected companies to make investments in the US in order to avoid the tariffs – but it remains to be seen if both the US and these firms will benefit in the long-term. I'm not so sure!
The Malaysian pair had previously faced the same twosome in the second round of the India Open, but the match was cut short when the latter was forced to retire due to injury.
