Tuesday’s escalation and retreat in the ongoing trade war between the United States and Canada only compounded the rising sense of uncertainty in terms of how President Donald Trump’s tariff hikes affect the economies of both countries.

The pause comes after Trump spoke with leaders of the “big 3” automakers, Ford, General Motors and Stellantis, on Wednesday, according to White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt.

President Donald Trump launched a trade war Tuesday against America’s three biggest trading partners, drawing immediate retaliation from Mexico, Canada and China and sending financial markets into a tailspin as the U.S. faced the threat of rekindled inflation and paralyzing uncertainty for business.

U.S. stocks slid Monday as investors braced for President Donald Trump’s proposed tariffs on Canada, Mexico and China to go into effect by the midnight deadline. The Nasdaq is down about 6.5% since since Trump took office on Jan. 20.

President Donald Trump’s plan to implement tariffs on key United States trading partners could affect more than $100 billion worth of goods imported to Illinois from Canada, Mexico and China. The countries were Illinois’ top trading partners in 2023.

The White House confirmed the pause to the United States, which followed a similar move with Mexico that allows for a period of negotiations about drug smuggling and illegal immigration. There is a risk that the tariffs could still come into effect, leaving the global economy uncertain about whether a crisis has been averted or if a possible catastrophe could still be coming in the weeks ahead.

The trade penalties that Trump signed Saturday at his Florida resort caused a mix of panic, anger and uncertainty, and threatened to rupture a decades-old partnership on trade in North America while further straining relations with China.

The president-elect is renewing unsuccessful calls he made during his first term for the U.S. to buy Greenland from Denmark, adding to the list of allied countries with which he’s picking fights even before taking office on Jan. 20.

The entire state of Minnesota and most of Wisconsin were under air quality alerts Wednesday as a gray haze from wildfire smoke shifted south, according to the National Weather Service.

While Canadian officials asked other countries for help fighting more than 400 blazes nationwide that already have displaced 20,000 people, air quality with what the U.S. rates as hazardous levels of pollution extended into central New York.

While the U.S. isn’t experiencing the same upheaval as Canada, trucking advocates say the industry still faces huge challenges, many of which predate the pandemic.

Ottawa Police Chief Peter Sloly lost his job after failing to move decisively against the bumper-to-bumper demonstration by hundreds of truck drivers. The protests by the so-called Freedom Convoy have infuriated many residents, who have complained of being harassed and intimidated on the streets.

Canada is America’s most trusted ally, but that relationship is at risk. In their new book “The Art of Diplomacy,” a former U.S. ambassador to Canada and his wife explain.

A study of rock minerals from northern Canada provides evidence that the Earth might have supported life hundreds of millions of years earlier than thought, according to research led by UChicago scientists.  

The Canadian prime minister spoke candidly at the University of Chicago on Wednesday, addressing trade tensions between both countries, as well as his vision of gender equality.

It’s open season for hunters of Canada geese, but the migrating birds have found a novel way to stay out of the firing line: wintering in the city. Rabiah Mayas joins us with that story and more from the world of science.