Trump comments raise hopes for tariff delay for Canada and Mexico

By David Lawder and Andrea Shalal

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. President Donald Trump on Wednesday raised hopes for another pause on steep new tariffs on imports from Mexico and Canada by saying they would take effect on April 2, about a month later than a deadline next week.

A White House official, however, said the March 4 deadline for the tariffs on Mexican and Canadian goods remained in effect "as of this moment," pending Trump's review of Mexican and Canadian actions to secure their borders and halt the flow of the opioid fentanyl and migrants into the U.S.

Trump sowed confusion during his first cabinet meeting on Wednesday, when he was asked about the timing of the 25% duties and replied, "April 2nd."

"I have to tell you that, you know, on April 2, I was going to do it on April 1," Trump said. "But I'm a little bit superstitious, I made it April 2, the tariffs go on. Not all of them but a lot of them."

Trump's comments prompted jumps in the value of the Canadian dollar and Mexican peso versus the greenback.

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