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Canada’s Prime Minister Mark Carney will impose measures to counter the oversupply of metal and aluminium imports and should enhance levies on the US, as more and more protectionist measures are deployed within the world tariff conflict over essential industrial inputs.
Carney on Thursday mentioned Canada had imposed 100 per cent tariffs on non-US metal and aluminium imports and on July 21 would “alter” its 25 per cent counter-tariffs on the 2 metals imported from the US based mostly on talks with Washington. The transfer comes after US President Donald Trump’s “catastrophic” doubling of tariffs on Canadian metal and aluminium earlier this month.
François-Philippe Champagne, Canada’s finance minister, mentioned the quotas have been launched to “stabilise the home market and stop dangerous commerce diversion as the results of the US actions which might be destabilising markets”.
Carney added: “Metal from different nations, from third nations, begins to return into Canada if we don’t shield our trade, so we’re setting these quotas.” The anti-dumping measures are in all probability geared toward China, on which Canada already has a 25 per cent surtax on imports of metal and aluminium.
Ottawa would additionally begin shopping for Canadian metal and aluminium for home infrastructure tasks, defence spending and the automotive trade, the prime minister mentioned.
“Metal and aluminium staff are on the frontline of this commerce disaster, these are the employees who will assist us construct one sturdy Canadian financial system,” Carney mentioned in Ottawa.
However Catherine Cobden, Canadian Metal Producers Affiliation president, and Marty Warren, United Steelworkers union’s nationwide director for Canada, mentioned the federal government’s resolution “falls in need of what our trade wants”.
“We are going to proceed to evaluation the small print of the measures and work constructively with the federal authorities to get a plan that works for Canadian metal producers and the 1000’s of staff that make up our sector,” they mentioned in a press release.
On Monday, through the G7 summit in Kananaskis, Alberta, Carney met Trump to debate a brand new financial and safety partnership. “We agreed to pursue negotiations in direction of a deal throughout the coming 30 days,” the prime minister posted on X on Monday afternoon.
Trump on June 4 launched 50 per cent tariffs on imports of metal and aluminium to the US, rising the 25 per cent fee utilized in March.
On the time, Canada’s metal trade described the doubling of the tariff as “catastrophic” for a sector that confronted widespread job losses and manufacturing shutdowns.
Canada is the biggest provider of the 2 metals to the US, accounting for practically 1 / 4 of US metal imports in 2023 and about half of aluminium imports final 12 months.
The metal sector is a C$15bn (US$11bn) trade that employs 23,000 folks and helps an extra 100,000 oblique jobs, in response to the CSPA.
Carney mentioned he was in contact with Trump “ceaselessly on a variety of points” and these newest measures would hold the metal trade afloat whereas Ottawa negotiates a brand new commerce cope with the White Home.