WASHINGTON D.C.: U.S. President Donald Trump paused new 50 percent tariffs on Canadian goods for three days late on August 18, saying the United States and Canada had reached a deal, while Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney said important work remained.

The tariffs had been scheduled to take effect at midnight.

Trump said on Truth Social that he paused the duties "based on the fact that Canada and the U.S.A., subject to the finalization of documents, have a DEAL."

About an hour later, Carney said in a statement that "substantial progress has been made, although there is important work still to be done."

Trump and Carney spoke on the afternoon of August 18, their second conversation this week, while negotiators from both countries have been engaged in weeks of talks.

"While we continue this work, Canada remains focused on building a stronger, more independent and more competitive economy at home," Carney said.

The office of U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer said the deal would include "comprehensive market access for all American goods, economic security commitments, digital trade alignment," and other provisions.

In a proclamation posted on the White House website, Trump said he had received Canada's commitment to address U.S. concerns over duties on dairy products, alcoholic beverages and motor vehicles.

U.S. officials provided no further details, while the Canadian government did not confirm the contents of an agreement.

The new tariffs would have covered about US$20 billion of Canadian imports and applied even to goods qualifying for preferential treatment under the U.S.-Mexico-Canada trade agreement, which has shielded much of Canadian industry from earlier U.S. tariffs.

Trump also said the Keystone XL pipeline, canceled by former President Joe Biden in 2021 after years of indigenous and environmental opposition, "may be awoken from the grave." He provided no details.

Canada's minister responsible for U.S. trade, Dominic LeBlanc, and chief trade negotiator Janice Charette have been in Washington since last week. On August 17, they met for nearly two hours with Greer and Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick.

The two sides have also discussed cutting U.S. Section 232 tariffs on Canadian vehicles to 15 percent from 25 percent, with further reductions based on the amount of U.S. content in each vehicle, according to sources familiar with the talks.

A key point of contention was how tariff deductions based on content should be calculated. Washington wanted only U.S.-produced content counted, while Canada pushed to include all North American content, including Canadian and Mexican parts.

Earlier on August 18, the U.S. Commerce Department issued new rules allowing automakers exporting from Canada and Mexico to certify their U.S. content levels for tariff deductions once a year instead of twice.