Trump administration brings in 'catastrophic' tariffs on Canada, Mexico and China

It seems the Trump administration is in no hurry to make friends with America's neighboring countries.

In less than two weeks of being back in office, President Trump has made an influx of amendments to the way the US is run.

From changes to passports and immigration to transgender people no longer being allowed to serve in the armed forces, Trump broke records for the number of executive orders signed on his first day as president.

President Trump's thought to have signed hundreds of executive orders already (Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)

Arguably one of his most controversial orders was to have the Gulf of Mexico renamed to the Gulf of America; which Google officially changed on its maps for US users earlier this week.

Now the Trump administration has stuck to its word in regards to its plans to bring in higher tariff imports on countries like China, Canada and Mexico - with the hiked percentages coming into force today (February 1).

For Mexico and Canada, import tariffs are now at 25 percent, while there's 10 percent tariffs on goods from China.

Why has Trump imposed the tariffs?

President Trump had been threatening the tariffs to ensure greater cooperation from the countries on stopping illegal immigration and the smuggling of chemicals used for fentanyl, but he has also pledged to use tariffs to boost domestic manufacturing.

"Starting tomorrow, those tariffs will be in place," White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt told reporters on Friday (January 31).

"These are promises made and promises kept by the president."

Canada, Mexico and China’s response to the tariffs

As you can imagine, the new changes haven't gone down well with Canadian, Mexican and Chinese officials.

Both Canada and Mexico have said they have prepared the option of retaliatory tariffs to be used if necessary.

"We’re ready with a response, a purposeful, forceful but reasonable, immediate response," said Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau ahead of the hiked tariffs coming into force.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said that Canada's ready to respond to the change (Attila Husejnow/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images)

Elsewhere, Liu Pengyu, spokesman for the Chinese Embassy in Washington, insisted that 'there is no winner in a trade war or tariff war' like the one Trump is starting.

During a press briefing on Friday, Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum said: "We have Plan A, Plan B, Plan C, depending on what the government of the United States decides. It is very important for the people of Mexico to know that we will always defend the dignity of our people, that we will always defend respect for our sovereignty, and engage in dialogue as equals, as we have always stated, without subordination."

Meanwhile, a study conducted this month by Warwick McKibbin and Marcus Noland, of the Peterson Institute for International Economics, found the 25 percent tariffs on Canada and Mexico and 10 percent tariffs on China 'would damage all the economies involved, including the US'.

"For Mexico, a 25 percent tariff would be catastrophic," the study said.

"Moreover, the economic decline caused by the tariff could increase the incentives for Mexican immigrants to cross the border illegally into the US - directly contradicting another Trump administration priority."