U.S. Escalates Trade War With Canada. It Is Banning Motorcycles And Other Products.

The White House announced a ban on several Canadian goods as the trade war between the countries continues to escalate.

President Donald Trump signed an executive order on Tuesday to ban different products, including several alcoholic beverages like malt beer, wines, cider, whiskies and vodka. Large-capacity motorcycles and mopeds are also included in the measure, which will go into effect on September 29.

U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer called the decision a "natural consequence of Canada's continued discriminatory treatment of crucial American exports."

Also on Tuesday, Canadian tariffs on U.S. imports worth $20 billion went into effect. They impact over 700 goods in the steel, dairy and farm industries. They were retaliation for U.S. tariffs imposed by the Trump administration, which alleges Canada is discriminating against the country in trade matters.

"Canada has been ripping off the United States of America for years. Their ridiculously high tariffs on our Farmers and farm products has made life impossible for these great American Patriots, and has long created a 60 Billion Dollar Deficit between our two Countries. Not sustainable, and NOT ANYMORE!" Trump said in August when announcing the decision.

To justify the Canadian tariffs, Trump is citing a 96-year-old law. Section 338 of the Tariff Act of 1930 does give the president power to impose tariffs if it is found that another country has discriminated against U.S. goods.

A recent poll has shown discomfort with the trade war. Conducted by Reuters/Ipsos poll, it found that 20 percent of respondents supported Trump's tariff hikes on Canadian goods, while 57 percent opposed them. Another 27 percent were uncertain about the policy.

Ottawa could quickly feel the impact as well, with the tariffs potentially jeopardizing 90,000 jobs. University of Calgary economics professor Trevor Tombe estimates that more than 52,000 jobs are directly at risk if sales of affected Canadian goods to the U.S. fall sharply, while another 35,000 positions could be lost among suppliers and service providers. His analysis, published by the Macdonald-Laurier Institute, puts the total at just over 87,000 jobs and estimates Canada's unemployment rate could rise from 6.4% to about 6.8%.

Machinery and electronics, plastics and rubber, furniture, wood products, chemicals, food products and clothing are among the sectors with the greatest exposure, according to Tombe's analysis. Ontario could lose roughly 36,000 jobs, followed by Quebec with 18,000 and British Columbia with 11,000. Alberta could lose about 9,000 despite its exports facing relatively little direct exposure because businesses there provide transportation and other services to exporters elsewhere in Canada.