Carney Considers Select Rollback of Canada Counter-Tariffs
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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’s trade war.
Carney said it’s because he wants to maximize the impacts of retaliatory tariffs on the U.S. but minimize the pain for Canadian businesses.
“We don’t automatically adjust; we look at what we can do for our industry that’s most effective,” Carney said in West Kelowna, British Columbia. “In 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’ll look at opportunities to do so.”
To try and bolster the auto sector, in April Carney offered counter-tariff relief to carmakers — but only if they invest andproduce vehiclesin Canada. As recently as June, Carney said Canada wouldadjustits 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.
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Carney’s 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 a51st U.S. state.
Carney narrowly won an election in April touting slogans like “Canada Strong” and “Elbows Up,” the latter phrase meant to evoke warding off belligerent opponents in the national sport of ice hockey.
The remarks highlight the shift since Carney’s predecessor Justin Trudeau backed the principle of “dollar-for-dollar” reprisals and imposedcounter-tariffson 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’s counter-tariffs as part of itsjustificationfor 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 hedidn’t thinkadditional counter-tariffs would change Trump’s mind, but could still inflict harm on Canada’s third most-populous province. That’s because it’s 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 “hardball” response, refusing concessions, according topollingby Angus Reid following the latest increase in U.S. import taxes.
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