OTTAWA--Canadian officials have removed U.S. seafood products from their list of retaliatory-tariff targets, a swift reversal likely fueled by anger from east-coast aquaculture firms and fear they would be subject to new American levies.

Canada's Department of Finance issued the notice late Wednesday on the X platform--less than 48 hours after the Canadian government released a list of over 700 U.S. products that would be subject to tariffs ranging from 15% to 50%. Canada's retaliation is in response to the collapse of trade talks last week, resulting in a new Trump administration tariff of 50% on about $20 billion in Canadian goods.

Canada's retaliatory duties are set to be implemented on Sept. 8, and officials and businesses in both countries are bracing for a prolonged trade conflict with no immediate resumption of talks.

"Based on feedback, we have made select adjustments to protect against broader economic harms, including removing seafood and fish products from our list of counter tariffs," the finance ministry said in its social-media post. The ministry added it would still maintain retaliatory tariffs targeting about $20 billion of U.S. imports.

Representatives from the Department of Finance weren't immediately available to answer further questions.

Trade analysts said the preponderance of U.S. seafood products on the list--while relatively small in dollar value--indicated that Canada wanted to exert pressure on the Republican Party in Maine, where Sen. Susan Collins faces re-election in the November midterms. Collins had warned that Trump's trade policy as it pertains to Canada posed economic risks to her state.

Canada's Industry Minister Melanie Joly said applying pressure on Republican lawmakers was a factor in crafting the retaliatory-tariff list.

The Nova Scotia Seafood Alliance, which represents over 200 firms in the Atlantic Canadian province, was among the most vocal critics of the government's attempt to penalize U.S. seafood products. It said seafood items on the retaliation list are imported by its member companies, where they are processed and then shipped back to the U.S.

The alliance's executive director, Kris Vascotto, said member companies would have faced significant cost increases had the retaliatory tariffs remained in place. He added the duties would have "forced firms to make "some very hard decisions about whether they keep their doors open for the rest of the [fishing] season or not," according to a report by the Canadian Broadcasting Corp.

Others feared retribution from the Trump administration. "The worry is that fish and seafood will now be targeted by American tariffs," Geoff Irvine, executive director of the Lobster Council of Canada, told the Halifax Chronicle Herald on Wednesday.

Mark Warner, a Toronto-based trade and investment lawyer, said Canada's quick removal of seafood products "underscores the speed with which the retaliatory list was drawn up, and the inherent difficulty of attempting to accomplish the twin aims of politically-targeted tariffs and dollar-for-dollar retaliation."

Last week, the U.S. and Canada appeared headed for a trade pact whereby the Trump administration would drop its plan to slap 50% duties on certain Canadian goods, and sharply lower its tariffs of Canadian-made steel, aluminum and automobiles. The U.S. said the 50% tariffs is in response to alleged Canadian mistreatment of U.S. automobiles, wines and spirits, and dairy products.