Trump touted a deal to avert Canada tariffs. What we know so far

Less than two hours before massive U.S. tariffs on certain Canadian goods were set to switch on, President Donald Trump announced a tentative deal to stave off the new duties.

The postponement could be just a brief respite for businesses who warn that the planned 50% tariffs on imports of wine, hockey sticks and a range of other Canadian products are already taking a toll.

The new import taxes on about $20 billion worth of goods were unveiled last month in response to what the Trump administration described as Canadian trade discrimination against key U.S. industries.

The tariffs were set to take effect Wednesday at 12:01 a.m. ET. But at 10:15 p.m. Tuesday, Trump announced on Truth Social that he would pause the tariffs for three days, “based on the fact that Canada and the U.S.A., subject to the finalization of documents, have a DEAL!”

Trump’s statement on the to-be-finalized deal included few details. But it hinted that an agreement with Canada could include restarting Keystone XL, the planned oil pipeline from Alberta to Nebraska that was scrapped in 2021 by then-President Joe Biden.

“The great Keystone XL Pipeline, long ago killed by Sleepy Joe Biden, may be awoken from the grave!” Trump wrote in the post.

In a follow-up post, Trump shared an AI-generated image depicting him pulling a pipeline labeled “KEYSTONE” out of the ground.

Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney, in a statement released Tuesday night, was more circumspect.

“Substantial progress has been made, although there is important work still to be done,” Carney’s statement said.

In another post midday Wednesday, Carney said the two sides are “moving towards an agreement that reinforces that Canadian advantage, including by securing the best terms in each of Canada’s most important strategic sectors and providing greater certainty about our future trading relationship.”

Asked Wednesday morning about the coming deal, Trump claimed that Canada made multiple concessions, including lowering its retaliatory tariffs on U.S. goods.

“We’ve come to a deal with Canada” after a “very good conversation” with Carney, Trump told reporters while touring construction projects on the White House grounds.

“They called yesterday and they gave us the points that we had to have,” Trump said, calling it a “very fair deal for both.”

Trump did not mention Keystone XL. But he said Canadian tariffs “will be non-existent for our farmers,” without specifying which duties he was referring to. Trump’s 50% tariff proposal was partly based on Canada’s alleged discrimination against the U.S. dairy industry.

Asked if the U.S. would lower its tariffs on Canadian autos as part of the deal — a top goal for Ottawa’s trade negotiators — Trump said, “We’re doing certain things.”

“We’ve got to give something,” he added. “They were…