Carney Considers Select Rollback of Canada Counter-Tariffs
PM Seeks to Hurt US Trade While Easing Pain for Domestic Firms
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Prime Minister Mark Carney said Canada will look for opportunities to remove some counter-tariffs against the U.S., despite winning an election in which he pledged to fight back against President Donald Trump鈥檚 trade war.
Carney said it鈥檚 because he wants to maximize the impacts of retaliatory tariffs on the U.S. but minimize the pain for Canadian businesses.
鈥淲e don鈥檛 automatically adjust; we look at what we can do for our industry that鈥檚 most effective,鈥 Carney said in West Kelowna, British Columbia. 鈥淚n some cases, that will be to remove tariffs. We have removed some tariffs over time so that, for example, the auto industry can function more effectively. And we鈥檒l look at opportunities to do so.鈥
To try and bolster the auto sector, in April Carney offered counter-tariff relief to carmakers 鈥 but only if they invest and听produce vehicles听in Canada. As recently as June, Carney said Canada would听adjust听its existing counter-tariffs on steel and aluminum based on discussions with the U.S. The U.S. has since raised some Canadian tariffs, but Canada has not retaliated.
RELATED:听Cleveland-Cliffs CEO Urges Canada to Hike Steel Tariffs
Carney鈥檚 latest comments underscore a politically awkward compromise as he seeks to minimize damage to domestic business and labor while standing firm against Trump. The president has not only imposed a broadside of tariffs but infuriated many Canadians by saying their country should be a听51st U.S. state.
Carney narrowly won an election in April touting slogans like 鈥淐anada Strong鈥 and 鈥淓lbows Up,鈥 the latter phrase meant to evoke warding off belligerent opponents in the national sport of ice hockey.
The remarks highlight the shift since Carney鈥檚 predecessor Justin Trudeau backed the principle of 鈥渄ollar-for-dollar鈥 reprisals and imposed听counter-tariffs听on C$60 billion ($43.6 billion) in U.S. goods in March. If Canadians expected other countries to follow suit, the months since have proved disappointing: Although the European Union and Mexico have discussed counter-measures, they have held off, leaving Canada and China the lone retaliators.
(Bloomberg Television via YouTube)
The White House cited Canada鈥檚 counter-tariffs as part of its听justification听for increasing headline tariffs to 35% from 25% on some Canadian products last week. The majority of goods, however, remain exempt, covered by the U.S.-Mexico-Canada trade deal Trump signed during his first term in office.
Last month, British Columbia Premier David Eby told Bloomberg he听didn鈥檛 think听additional counter-tariffs would change Trump鈥檚 mind, but could still inflict harm on Canada鈥檚 third most-populous province. That鈥檚 because it鈥檚 difficult for B.C. businesses to replace American steel and aluminum by paying to ship the heavy commodities from Canadian smelters in the east, thousands of miles away by rail.
Nonetheless, Canadian voters still favor a 鈥渉ardball鈥 response, refusing concessions, according to听polling听by Angus Reid following the latest increase in U.S. import taxes.听
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