US imposes sanctions on Canadian liquor and other products

Amid escalating trade tensions between the United States and Canada, the US imposed new sanctions from Tuesday on products entering from Canada, including liquor.

The sanctions, announced earlier this month by President Donald Trump, cover beverages such as beer, sparkling wine, brandy and sake, as well as dairy whey protein and high-capacity motorcycles.

The US took this step after Canada imposed retaliatory tariffs worth about 20 billion US dollars on American goods on September 8. President Trump said the decision was a response to what he called Canada's "discriminatory" treatment of American goods.

The dispute between the two neighbors deepened further after trade talks in Washington in August ended without conclusion. Canada imports nearly 60 percent of its goods from the US and sends nearly 70 percent of its exports to the American market.

The Canadian government has announced a relief package worth about 5.4 billion US dollars to help affected businesses and workers. Last year, the US imported about 800 million US dollars worth of liquor from Canada.

According to international media, President Trump used the Smoot-Hawley Tariff Act of 1930 to take this step. However, whiskey and liquor imported in containers larger than 4 liters have been exempted from the sanctions and customs duty. American businesses are reported to have stockpiled large quantities of goods ahead of the sanctions.