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A look at the numbers behind Ottawa’s tariff reprisal against Trump

Canada is imposing dollar-for-dollar tariff “countermeasures” on up to $16.6 billion worth of U.S. imports
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Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and Foreign Affairs Minister Chrystia Freeland speak at a press conference in Ottawa on Thursday, May 31, 2018. .THE CANADIAN PRESS/ Patrick Doyle

The sweeping Canadian retaliation against Donald Trump’s steel and aluminum tariffs has been carefully crafted in hopes of hitting the U.S. president where it hurts.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s counter-tariffs will take effect Sunday — a month after the Trump administration slapped duties on U.S. steel and aluminum imports from Canada and other allies.

Canada’s response is set to include imposing tariffs on selected consumer products that come from a wide range of sectors — from beer kegs, to ballpoint pens, to maple syrup.

Ottawa released a preliminary list of the targeted items a few weeks ago. On Friday, it will post its finalized lineup of items that will be hit by Canadian tariffs.

Here’s a rundown of some of the states and products in the crosshairs of the retaliatory measures using Canadian government numbers. The figures are based on 2017 data from Statistics Canada and the U.S. Census Bureau.

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Some of the states set to be hit hardest by Canada’s tariffs, based on how much of the targeted consumer products they shipped north in 2017:

  • Ohio — $1.3 billion
  • New York — $1.2 billion
  • Illinois — $1 billion
  • Wisconsin — $903 million
  • Pennsylvania — $761 million
  • Washington — $688 million
  • California — $635 million
  • Michigan — $573 million
  • Tennessee — $517 million

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Value of 2017 imports from U.S. for some of the products targeted by Canada’s preliminary tariffs:

  • Herbicides — $1.13 billion
  • Motorboats, rowboats, canoes and other pleasure boats — $646 million
  • Coffee, roasted — $525 million
  • Mayonnaise, salad dressing, mixed condiments — $522 million
  • Fungicides — $418 million
  • Ketchup and other tomato sauces — $264 million
  • Organic facewash — $229 million
  • Beer kegs — $216 million
  • Soups and broths — $204 million
  • Whiskey — $62 million
  • Maple sugar and maple syrup — $17 million
  • Ballpoint pens — $3.5 million

Andy Blatchford and Mike Blanchfield, The Canadian Press

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