Trudeau says Canada will push back on U.S. tariffs with Trump administration

OTTAWA — Prime Minister Justin Trudeau says his government will work to convince the administration of U.S. President Donald Trump his steel and aluminum tariffs would have a negative effect on both countries.

A senior government official said Tuesday Trudeau spoke with U.S. Vice President JD Vance about the impact the steel tariffs would have in Ohio, which Vance represented in the U.S. Senate.

Trump signed an executive order Monday to implement 25 per cent tariffs on all steel and aluminum imports into the United States, beginning March 12.

Trudeau and Vance are both in Paris for a global summit on AI.

Trudeau briefly spoke to reporters before a plenary at which Vance spoke and Trudeau attended.

READ MORE: Ontario PC Leader Doug Ford says province is ‘prepared’ for new tariffs

Trudeau said his government would “be working with the American administration over the coming weeks to highlight the negative impacts on Americans and Canadians of these unacceptable tariffs.”

Trudeau added he will also be working with “international partners and friends and it comes to that, our response, of course, will be firm and clear.”

Asked whether his government would impose dollar-for-dollar reciprocal tariffs, Trudeau responded “we hope it will not come to that.”

Speaking in French, he said there have been “initial conversations” with allies. He pointed to his upcoming visit to Brussels Wednesday where he will meet with EU leaders, and said there is “coordination to be done.”

Bea Bruske, president of the Canadian Labour Congress, says Trump’s previous steel and aluminum tariffs had a “devastating impact” on Canadian workers.

“Thousands of workers faced layoffs and uncertainty, and the effects rippled across manufacturing, construction and supply chains,” Bruske says, adding that 2,000 workers and 500 employers relied on emergency government support.

Canada’s Minister of Innovation, Science and Industry François-Philippe Champagne said on Monday that the steel and aluminum tariffs are “totally unjustified”.

“We are consulting with our international partners as we examine the details. Our response will be clear and calibrated,” he said.

Candace Laing, the president and CEO of the Canadian Chamber of Commerce, said the news of tariffs on steel and aluminum makes it clear that “perpetual uncertainty is here to stay.”

According to the Canadian Steel Producers Association $20 billion dollars worth of steel is traded annually between the U.S. and Canada.

Data shows that approximately 10,000 jobs in Hamilton are directly tied to the steel industry and that about 40,000 jobs are related or ‘spun off’ — and could be affected.

Ontario Progressive Conservative Leader Doug Ford spoke on Monday morning with the CEOs of Canadian steel companies Stelco and Dofasco about the impending tariffs.

Canada’s premiers — including Ford and Scott Moe of Saskatchewan — are heading to Washington, D.C., today on two-day diplomatic mission to address the tariffs with U.S. officials and lawmakers.

The premiers are set to make the case that tariffs would unnecessarily harm both countries’ economies.

With files from The Canadian Press — first published Feb. 11, 2024.

READ MORE: A timeline of Canada-U. S. tariffs on steel and aluminum