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However, Trump suggested there would be a staggered rollout, telling聽reporters he will target Canadian oil and gas shipments with a lower 10 per cent tariff rate,聽setting a later date for implementation of Feb. 18.

Trump said he will “eventually” aim sectoral tariffs at imports of semiconductor chips, “next month” at steel and aluminum products, “ultimately copper,” and pharmaceuticals at some unspecified date.

And he said there is nothing Canada or Mexico could do to avoid tariffs. “We’re not looking for a concession,” Trump said, insisting that tariffs are a way for him to raise “big money” in revenue.聽

The president warned he will “absolutely” soon impose tariffs on the European Union, as well.

On Friday evening, three Trudeau cabinet ministers at a news conference in Washington said the federal government remains in the dark about exactly what tariffs Trump will levy first. They declined to interpret his remarks, saying the Canadian government would respond only to formal written decisions issued by Trump, not to the rhetoric.

“I’m not in the head space of President Trump,” said Foreign Affairs Minister Melanie Joly. She said efforts to persuade two key Trump officials聽鈥� border czar Tom Homan and Secretary of State Marco Rubio聽鈥� that Canada has a strong $1.3-billion border security plan, and that Canada is a source of less than one per cent of illegal immigration and fentanyl into the U.S., were met with a “positive response.”

But Immigration Minister Marc Miller conceded that there are “no guarantees” Trump would change his mind as of Friday night.

Earlier on Friday, Trump rejected one of Canada’s biggest arguments: that tariffs will trigger everyday prices to rise.

鈥淭ariffs don’t cause inflation,” said Trump in the Oval Office. “They cause success. They cause big success. So we’re gonna have great success. There could be some temporary, short-term disruption,鈥� he acknowledged, “and people will understand that.” But he said in the long run, it would force other countries, such as those in Europe, to drop barriers to American imports like farm products.聽

Earlier Friday, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt had thrown cold water on a Reuters report that suggested Trump would delay the application of tariffs against Canada and Mexico until March 1, calling the story “false.”

“These are promises made and promises kept by the president,” said Leavitt, repeating that Trump’s objective is to聽halt “the illegal fentanyl that they have sourced and allowed to distribute into our country.”

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, in remarks Friday morning before meeting with an advisory council on Canada-U.S. relations, said he would not “sugar-coat” the impact that tariffs could be expected to have on Canadian exports and the overall economy.

Some economists say Trump’s threatened 25 per cent “across the board” tariffs would put Canada into a recession, with estimates that U.S. tariffs could cause up to a three per cent drop in economic activity here.

“Our nation could be facing difficult times in the coming weeks,” said Trudeau.

The Canadian government will retaliate with countermeasures against any U.S. tariffs imposed by Trump, Trudeau said, and would support Canadian workers and industries who may be hard hit, especially if tariffs are sustained.聽

“If the president does choose to implement any tariffs against Canada, we’re ready with a response, a purposeful, forceful but reasonable, immediate response,” he said. “It’s not what we want, but if he moves forward, we will also act.”

Canada has planned an escalating series of measures that could potentially ramp up聽to impose counter-tariffs on $150 billion worth of American imports, and could include limits or export tariffs on Canadian energy shipments to the U.S.聽

The federal government says Canada provides more of the crude oil the U.S. imports than the rest of the world combined, a trading relationship that it says allows for “reliable supply and lower pump prices for Americans.”

Trump and his threats have shaped a lot of the political rhetoric in a Liberal leadership race to replace Trudeau on March 9.

Earlier Friday, the two front-runners Mark Carney and Chrystia Freeland repeated their arguments, with Carney saying he stands “foursquare” behind efforts by Trudeau’s cabinet team in Washington trying prevent the tariffs.聽

“President Trump thinks Canada will cave in. We will never, ever bow down to a bully,” said Carney, who has backed dollar-for-dollar countermeasures.聽

Freeland, on the other hand, took a tougher line. She, too, backs a dollar-for-dollar response, but one that is more forceful and immediate. On Friday, she said Trudeau should target up to $200 billion in American imports and take direct aim at Trump’s adviser Elon Musk, owner of Tesla.

“Canada must threaten to impose a 100 per cent tariff on all Tesla vehicles and a 100 per cent tariff on U.S. wine, beer, and spirits if unfair tariffs are imposed on Canadians tomorrow,” Freeland said in a release.

Trudeau has not tipped his government’s hand on what American products would be hit with countermeasures, but federal officials have confirmed the first tranche would be targeted at politically sensitive American products, and actions would ramp up over time.

Trudeau said an advisory group of former premiers, business and union leaders are helping to make Ottawa’s argument in the U.S. that Trump’s tariffs against Canada “would have disastrous consequences for the United States, putting American jobs at risk, raising prices on Americans and undermining our collective security.”

Trudeau’s remarks prompted questions during a White House briefing, with reporters asking聽Leavitt if the president could guarantee that tariffs won’t stoke inflation, or increase prices at gas pumps and in grocery stores for Americans. One journalist asked if Canada’s vow to retaliate showed the U.S. is on the brink of a trade war.

Leavitt bristled and said, “I don’t think so.”

Trump’s purpose, she said, is to halt fentanyl and migrants from “pouring into” America, adding “the president is intent on doing this, and I think Justin Trudeau would be wise to talk to President Trump directly before pushing outlandish comments like that to the media.”

Reuters had also reported that the Trump administration would provide a process for the countries to seek exemptions for certain imports. Leavitt did not directly answer when asked if the tariffs would be in place for the long term or whether Trump would remove them if Canada, Mexico or China offered concessions.聽

“If the president at any time decides to roll back those tariffs, I’ll leave it to him to make that decision, but starting tomorrow, those tariffs will be in place,” she said.

In Niagara Falls,聽Ontario Progressive Conservative Leader Doug Ford fully backed Trudeau’s retaliation plan.

鈥淒ollar for dollar, tariff for tariff, the federal government has my full support to hit back and hit back hard,鈥� Ford said as he campaigned for a third term as premier in a Feb. 27 vote.

鈥淚f President Trump proceeds with these tariffs, Canada can and should make him regret them,鈥� Ford told reporters, adding he is prepared to take 鈥渆normous action鈥� to protect Ontario workers, businesses and families. He offered no more details of that plan.

With files from Rob Ferguson