The US Conference of Mayors (USCM) has called on President Donald Trump to cancel the tariffs on Canada and Mexico, which it said would have a severe impact on US businesses and consumers, and to promote trade relations with both countries. The White House has announced that the US government has officially implemented 25 percent tariffs on all imports from its two leading trading partners as of yesterday, March 4.
USCM President Columbus Mayor Andrew Ginther stated that US cities and its residents have benefited from good trade relations with Canada and Mexico. Mr. Ginther pointed out that this was the reason mayors supported Trump’s US-Canada-Mexico trade agreement in 2020, which strengthened and rebalanced trade across North America. Taking into account that the economic relations with both countries have created millions of jobs for Americans and have provided economic opportunities for businesses, these tariffs would instead lead to stagnation of economic growth, would risk jobs and even put severe pressure on the cost of living, he said. The USCM official also underlined that municipal costs including infrastructure maintenance, affordable housing projects and energy use would increase everywhere.
In the meantime, the statement released by USCM argued that tariffs on Canada and Mexico would disrupt supply chains, raise costs for US businesses, thereby increasing prices for consumers. Moreover, retaliation from Canada and Mexico could further impact US exporters, including small and medium businesses that rely on international markets. Also, tariffs would disproportionately affect several industries from manufacturing and agriculture to automotive.
According to recent data from the Office of the United States Trade Representative (USTR), in 2024 total US trade with Canada and Mexico reached $1.6 trillion.