Canada is levelling reciprocal dollar-for-dollar tariffs on U.S. steel and aluminum imports, in response to U.S. President Donald Trump’s 25 per cent tariffs on all steel and aluminum imports that came into effect today.
The federal government’s countermeasures will come into effect at 12:01 a.m. on March 13. The 25 per cent tariffs will hit steel products worth $12.6 billion and aluminum products worth $3 billion.
In addition, Canada is hitting another $14.2 billion worth of imported U.S. goods with fresh tariffs, totalling $29.8 billion in retaliation.
“The U.S. administration is once again inserting disruption and disorder into an incredibly successful trading partnership and raising the costs of everyday goods for Canadians and American households alike,” said Finance Minister Dominic LeBlanc.
LeBlanc said the federal government learned on Tuesday that the latest U.S. tariffs would also be imposed on steel and aluminum content in certain derivative products, and officials on this side of the border are assessing this and readying a further tariff response if warranted.
“We will not stand idly by while our iconic steel and aluminum industries are being unfairly targeted,” the minister continued, announcing the package alongside Foreign Affairs Minister Melanie Joly and Industry Minister Francois-Philippe Champagne.
What new goods are being targeted?
These measures come on top of the initial $30 billion worth of U.S. imports that Canada slapped tariffs on earlier this month, in response to Trump’s U.S. International Emergency Economic Powers Act tariffs put in place March 4, based on what Joly called “exaggerated claims about our border.”
According to the federal government, the list of additional products affected by counter-tariffs includes tools, computers and servers, display monitors, water heaters, sport equipment, and cast-iron products.
The full list of fresh items slated to face tariffs as of Thursday, was issued late Wednesday afternoon. It includes jewelry, watches, tricycles, video game consoles, smartphones, umbrellas, gongs, golf clubs, fishing poles, and lighters.
“Make no mistake… this is going to be a day-to-day fight,” Joly said. “This is now the second round of unjustified tariffs level against Canada and Canadian goods.”
Joly also called on American citizens to “help us help you,” imploring them to talk to their elected representatives at all levels about the impact Trump’s tariffs are having on jobs and the cost of living south of the border as other countries are increasingly pushing back.
PM-designate meets steelworkers
The deepening trade war comes amid Ottawa’s transition of power from Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to prime minister-designate Mark Carney.
Yet to declare when the official hand-over of power is happening, Carney visited a steel plant in Hamilton, Ont., today to speak with workers.
Speaking at the same time as the ministers were taking reporters’ questions in Ottawa, Carney – donning safety gear – called it a “difficult day for Canada,” and pledged that “all the proceeds from our tariffs go back to support workers in the affected industries.”
Asked if Carney played a role in deciding the government’s retaliation, given his advocacy during the Liberal leadership race for a dollar-for-dollar response, LeBlanc was unspecific.
“Obviously, we took note of what the prime minister-designate said in the leadership campaign, but it’s also been the position of the Government of Canada to have a strong response to these unjustified measures,” he said. “So, this shouldn’t surprise anyone.”
LeBlanc and Champagne will be travelling to D.C. alongside Ontario Premier Doug Ford for meetings with U.S. administration officials including U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick on Thursday.
‘It’s going to be a better relationship’
Carney met with Ford for breakfast in Toronto on Wednesday. A social media clip the prime-minister designate posted afterwards shows the two men engaged in a friendly conversation.
Coming out of that meeting, Ford was asked by reporters at Queen’s Park if he thought Carney could smooth things out with Trump, in light of the challenging relationship Trudeau had with his U.S. counterpart.
Ford said he thinks so.
“It’s going to be a better relationship than with prime minister Trudeau, and no disrespect to prime minister Trudeau. I can tell you one thing, Mark Carney’s an extremely astute business mind,” Ford said.
“He understands numbers, and so does President Trump, and Secretary Lutnick. I think they’re going to get along very well. They both come from the same financial sectors.”
Speaking later, Carney said that he respects Trump’s concerns about American workers and fentanyl, and he is “ready to sit down with President Trump at the appropriate time.”
But, in light of Trump’s continued comments about making Canada the 51st U.S. state, Carney said that meeting would need to happen “under a position where there’s respect for Canadian sovereignty, and we’re working for a common approach.”
