Trump’s tariff strategy has changed. But his goal hasn’t | CNN Business

Less than two hours before yet another midnight tariff deadline, President Donald Trump backed off late Tuesday from his threat to impose steep tariffs on Canadian goods. The two nations struck a deal, Trump announced, with few details. “We’re going to give something, and we’re doing certain things,” he told reporters Wednesday. The 11th-hour pivot underscores how the Trump administration has used tariffs not only as an economic tool, but also as leverage in negotiations with allies and adversaries. The spat over tariffs isn’t really about taxing $20 billion of Canadian imports. It’s about whether Trump can use the threat of levies to extract concessions from America’s closest trading partner — including, but certainly not limited to, opening its markets to US farmers and offering more favorable terms for US businesses. Trump pauses 50% Canada tariffs, says the two sides have a ‘deal’ For example, days before announcing the pending tariff threat, Trump said he was considering levies to punish the United States’ northern neighbor for allegedly not doing enough to stop wildfire smoke from polluting American air. Now, Trump claims to have used the threat to reviv