‘Existential threat’: Global markets plunge after Trump tariff move

The global stock market has been smashed after Donald Trump announced looming tariffs on America’s three largest trading partners.

The global stock market has been rattled after Donald Trump announced tariffs on America’s three largest trading partners, Mexico, Canada and China.

The US President confirmed overnight that 25 per cent tariffs on Mexico and Canada will go ahead today, declaring there is “no room left” for talks to avoid the move, which is aimed at curbing fentanyl trafficking and illegal immigration.

“On the tariffs, is there any room left for Canada and Mexico to make a deal before midnight?” a journalist asked Mr Trump at the White House on Monday.

“No room left for Mexico or for Canada,” Mr Trump replied.

“The tariffs you know, they’re all set. They go into effect tomorrow.”

The President also signed an executive action on Monday, doubling tariffs on Chinese imports to 20 per cent.

The move came after Mr Trump first imposed a 10 per cent tariff on Chinese imports last month.

“I have determined that the PRC has not taken adequate steps to alleviate the illicit drug crisis through cooperative enforcement actions, and that the crisis described in Executive Order 14195 has not abated,” he said in his order.

US President Donald Trump speaks in the Roosevelt Room of the White House in Washington, DC, on March 3, 2025. Picture: ROBERTO SCHMIDT / AFP

MORE:‘Hate’: Ivanka lifts lid on leaving Donald Trump

Mr Trump last month warned there would be a flat 25 per cent tax on all Canadian and Mexican imports, with the exception of 10 per cent on Canadian energy. However, the tariffs were delayed until March 4 after both countries made commitments to reduce drugs and people at the border.

On Monday, Mr Trump said he was still displeased with progress on stopping fentanyl, despite illegal immigration busts along the US-Mexico border dropping to a 25-year low in February.

“So you understand, vast amounts of fentanyl have poured into our country from Mexico, and as you know, also from China, where it goes to Mexico and goes to Canada,” he said.

The global stock market has been floundering since Mr Trump’s announcement.

The value of the top 500 US companies sank a massive 1.8 per cent at the close of trading.

Australian shares dropped 1 per cent to its lowest level this year at the start of trading today.

‘Existential threat’: Canada responds to tariffs

Canada’s Foreign Minister Melanie Joly said the tariffs pose “an existential threat” to the nation, announcing Canada is “ready” to respond with its own levies.

“We are ready with $155 billion worth of tariffs and we are ready with the first tranche of tariffs, which is $30 billion, which has already been announced,” Mélanie Joly said, as per Canadian outlet CBC News.

“We know this is an existential threat to us. There are thousands of jobs in Canada at stake. Now, we’ve done the work, we are ready, should the U.S. decide to launch their trade war.”

Canada’s Foreign Minister Melanie Joly said the tariffs pose “an existential threat” to the nation. Picture: Emmanuel Croset/AFP

MORE:Trump’s ex eyes $22m payout after shock split

Premier of Ontario, Doug Ford also issued strong words, warning Canada is ready to respond to the US like “they’ve never seen before”

“The market is going to go downhill faster than the American bobsled team. It’s going to be an absolute disaster for both countries,” he told NBC News.

“There’s no country in the world that buys more products off the U.S. than we do. We’re the No. 1 trading customer to 28 states, and a lot of them are red states. They’re going to feel the pain like they’ve never felt before.”

Mr Ford said he would stop his province’s shipments of nickel, claiming “50 per cent of nickel you use if coming out of Ontario”.

“I’m going after absolutely everything, and I don’t want to. We keep the lights on the 1.5 million homes in manufacturing in New York, in Michigan and in Minnesota. If [President Donald Trump] wants to destroy our economy and our families, I will shut down the electricity going down to the U.S., and I’m telling you we will do it,” he said.

Doug Ford, the premier of Ontario. Picture: NBC News

Powerful drug kills 279,000 Americans

The Mexico-Canada tariffs are being levied under the president’s use of the International Emergency Economic Powers Act to target drug traffickers bringing fentanyl into the US.

Fentanyl has killed at least 279,000 Americans over the past four years, according to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention data last updated in September.

The powerful synthetic opioid wiped out nearly 0.1 per cent of America’s population over that period by being sprinkled into a wide range of illegal drugs and counterfeit prescriptions, often killing unwitting and disproportionately young users.

Fentanyl has killed at least 279,000 Americans over the past four years. Picture: iStock

Fentanyl is smuggled into the US across land borders, where it’s often intercepted, and through the international mail and shipping systems.

In fiscal year 2024, border agents seized more than 21,000 pounds of fentanyl coming from Mexico – enough to kill 4.8 billion people- while just 43 pounds were impounded coming from Canada.

US commerce secretary Howard Lutnick earlier said Canada and Mexico were “doing a good job” on reducing immigrants coming across the frontier. But they needed to do more on preventing fentanyl coming into the US.

Canada bristles at this given only one per cent of the fentanyl coming into the US is via Canada.

– With the New York Post

Originally published as ‘Existential threat’: Global markets plunge after Trump tariff move