The deadline for the duties to go into effect are still three weeks, which may mean the announcements could be a negotiating move.

President Donald Trump posted letters to the leaders of Mexico and the European Union, saying they had not done enough to head off the new tariffs.

Mexico did not face a new tariff on April 2, the day of Trump's so-called "Liberation Day" tariff rollout. There remains a 25% tariff on non-USMCA-compliant goods from Canada and Mexico, as well as a 50% tariff on steel, aluminum and derivative products.

The European Union braced on Friday for a possible letter from U.S. President Donald Trump outlining planned duties on the United States' largest trade and investment partner after a broadening of his tariff war in recent days.

It shows that personal grudges rather than simple economics are a driving force in the U.S. leader’s use of tariffs.

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said that there needed to be a “genuine rebalancing” in the China-Europe relationship.

Major stock indexes were slightly lower on Friday as U.S. President Donald Trump's announcement of tariffs on imports from Canada fanned worries about trade tensions, with the Canadian dollar down against the greenback.