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President Donald Trump said Friday that a first round of tariffs on Canada, Mexico, and China will begin on his self-imposed deadline Feb. 1 but that some duties on oil and gas may be limited.
“We’re not looking for a concession,” Trump said about the state of negotiations, signaling that nothing can be done by China, Mexico, and Canada at this point to forestall this round of duties that Trump has planned for Saturday morning.
But the president also offered comments late Friday that suggested the immediate impact on oil and gas may be limited.
He said the oil tariffs he installs this weekend will “probably” come down to 10% in a nod to what emerged as a last-minute sticking point. But other duties on oil and gas could be in the offing as soon as Feb. 18, he added.
Trump also said he wasn’t concerned about the market reaction to his plan going into effect, saying tariffs have gotten a bad reputation before repeating his oft-repeated quip that, in his view, tariff is the most beautiful word in the dictionary.
The comments from the president came after White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt told reporters the plan for 25% duties on Canada and Mexico and 10% rates on China remains in effect, and “those tariffs will be for public consumption in about 24 hours.”
Read more: The latest news and updates as Trump’s tariff deadline approaches
The new back-and-forth Friday was the latest in a series of comments and signals this week that have left many businesses in wait-and-see mode.
The president downplayed the chances that this weekend’s new tariffs will cause inflation but did acknowledge “there could be some temporary short-term disruption.” Trump also listed a range of other products and places where he expects to place tariffs — but without clarity on exactly when.
He listed industries from semiconductors to steels to pharmaceuticals. He also outlined a plan to “absolutely” impose tariffs on the European Union in the future.
“Eventually we are going to put tariffs on chips,” he added at one point. The semiconductor comments came after a meeting with Nvidia (NVDA) CEO Jensen Huang.
Leaders in Canada and Mexico have meanwhile expressed confusion and frustration all week about what they can do, given Trump has cited issues of migration and illegal fentanyl as the rationale for the tariffs coming as soon as Saturday.
Matthew Holmes of the Canadian Chamber of Commerce weighed in late Thursday, calling any tariffs lose-lose.
“We will keep working with partners to show President Trump and Americans that this doesn’t make life any more affordable,” he said. “It makes life more expensive and sends our integrated businesses scrambling.”
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