U.S. President Donald Trump on Wednesday signed a presidential memorandum directing federal agencies to identify Canadian-made goods used in civilian government procurement and begin steps to exclude them, according to the White House.
The decision comes a week after Trump imposed a ban on imports of Canadian alcohol, motorcycles, and several other products, further intensifying the ongoing trade dispute between the two countries.
In the memo, the Office of Management and Budget and the U.S. Trade Representative, working with the Federal Acquisition Regulatory Council, have been instructed to identify products of Canadian origin and take measures to remove them from the list of goods eligible for purchase by the federal government.
The Trump administration said the action was prompted by what it called Canada’s ‘unreasonable and discriminatory’ treatment of American products, as well as barriers faced by U.S. companies seeking access to Canadian federal and provincial government procurement contracts.
Since 2021, the U.S. government has purchased Canadian products worth an average of approximately $1.6 billion annually.
The administration argued that Canada had long benefited from preferential access to the U.S. market while continuing practices it viewed as unfair toward American businesses and trade. The memorandum does not appear to impose an immediate prohibition on federal agencies buying Canadian-made products. However, it could pave the way for future restrictions on such purchases.
It also instructs the U.S. Trade Representative to keep monitoring Canada’s procurement practices and its treatment of American goods. Federal agencies have also been directed to take the necessary steps to put the memorandum’s provisions into effect.
Trade tensions between the United States and Canada have intensified in recent weeks following the two countries’ failure to reach a trade agreement in August. On August 22, the United States implemented 50% tariffs on a broad range of Canadian goods. In response, Canada imposed retaliatory tariffs covering nearly 700 categories of U.S. products, with the measures taking effect on September 8.
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