Foreign leaders and even some domestic lawmakers here in America are raising alarm bells about President Trump’s proposed 25 percent tariff on Mexican and Canadian goods, and an additional 10 percent tariff on Chinese imports which will sit atop all the current tariffs in place. Trump’s team and the markets, however, seemed unbothered by the news so far. 

Mexico’s leader, President Sheinbaum, wrote in a public statement to Trump on Tuesday about efforts her government is taking to slow the flow of fentanyl and migrants through America’s southern border. She also blamed demand in America — not Mexican supply — for the ongoing drug crisis. 

“Seventy percent of the illegal weapons seized from criminals in Mexico come from your country. We do not produce these weapons, nor do we consume synthetic drugs. Tragically, it is in our country that lives are lost to the violence resulting from meeting the drug demand in yours,” Ms. Sheinbaum wrote Tuesday. 

“President Trump, migration and drug consumption in the United States cannot be addressed through threats or tariffs. What is needed is cooperation and mutual understanding to tackle these significant challenges,” she added. 

The leader of the opposition in Canada, Pierre Poilievre — who is, according to polls, likely to be elected prime minister next year — said Prime Minister Trudeau has no plan to combat a potential trade war with the new Trump administration. 

“President Trump yesterday made an unjustified threat,” the leader of the opposition said at a press conference. “Now, we must take account and we must be honest with our unprecedented weakness … Our economy is teetering on the brink of collapse and now we face this renewed threat. We need a plan.”

According to the New York Times, Mr. Trudeau called Trump at his Mar-a-Lago estate shortly after the tariffs were announced. 

Mr. Poilievre also demanded the speaker of the Canadian House of Commons open the floor for debate on Trump’s proposed tariffs. 

“Canada needs a plan and the Prime Minister does not have one. Conservatives are calling for an emergency debate in order for Parliament to address the proposed 25 percent US tariffs on Canadian goods, the impact it will have on workers and the economy, and to question the Liberal Government on their failings to establish a plan and path forward on this matter,” Mr. Poilievre said in a letter. 

On Tuesday, European markets seemed queasy following Trump’s threats. The Stoxx 600 closed at 0.5 percent down while auto stocks closed down 1.7 percent, according to CNBC. The parent company of Jeep, Dodge, and Chrysler — Stellantis — closed down five percent on Tuesday. 

In America, the tariff threat seemed to have no impact on the nation’s markets. The Dow and the S&P 500 continued to climb as of Tuesday afternoon, despite Trump’s Monday night announcement. “We still see tariffs as more strategizing and think the bark will be worse than the bite,” an employee for NatAlliance Securities, Andrew Brenner, told Yahoo Finance. 

Some of Trump’s top advisors and aides have assured the press and the American people that the high tariffs the 47th president will implement are meant to be a bargaining chip — not a long-term trade barrier that will roil America’s relationships with allies. 

The nominee for commerce secretary, Howard Lutnick, who has been friends with the president-elect for decades, said on CNBC after the election that Trump’s tariffs were meant to be a cudgel for negotiations with foreign governments and manufacturers. In announcing Mr. Lutnick’s nomination for the commerce department, Trump also said the United States Trade Representative will report directly to the commerce secretary during the new administration.

“Of course it’s a bargaining chip. We can’t sell a Ford or GM in Europe … Why? There’s 100 percent tariffs. How about Japan? 100 percent tariffs,” Mr. Lutnick told CNBC “They’re gonna come in and negotiate and their tariffs are gonna come down, and finally Ford and General Motors are gonna be able to sell in these places.” 

The billionaire investor Bill Ackman — who was a major financial backer of the Trump 2024 campaign — took to X on Tuesday to calm nerves about the tariffs, saying that they are not a long-term solution, but a weapon in diplomatic negotiations. 

“To be clear, according to Trump the 25 percent tariffs will not be implemented, or if implemented will be removed, once Mexico and Canada stop the flow of illegal immigrants and fentanyl into the U.S. In other words, @realDonald Trump is going to use tariffs as a weapon to achieve economic and political outcomes,” Mr. Ackman wrote.