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Global News
6 days ago
- Business
- Global News
Steel tariff measures ‘fail to address the crisis we are in,' industry says
The Canadian steel industry says the federal government's recently-announced measures to combat the impacts of U.S. steel and aluminum tariffs 'fail to address the crisis we are in.' Thursday's statement from the Canadian Steel Producers Association (CSPA) takes particular issue with immediate measures like a tariff rate quota on foreign steel products, which the industry group says should be far lower to prevent the dumping of those materials at the expense of domestic producers. 'In its current form, the (tariff-rate quota) will do little to support our industry,' CSPA president and CEO Catherine Cobden said. 'While we appreciated their willingness to act, we are concerned that the immediate measures fail to address the crisis we are in.' The measures unveiled by Prime Minister Mark Carney and his cabinet last week include a tariff rate quota of 100 per cent of 2024 levels on imports of steel products from non-free trade agreement partners in order to prevent oversupply of those metals. Story continues below advertisement The goal, Carney said, is to ensure foreign steel diverted away from the U.S. due to its 50 per cent tariffs don't end up in Canada. The government also intends to introduce new tariffs in the coming weeks to protect Canadian industries from unfair trading practices and global overcapacity, but has not set a specific date for those measures. The timeline, Cobden said Thursday, 'is at odds with the extreme urgency we are feeling.' 1:48 Carney to increase U.S. steel, aluminum tariffs if trade talks with Trump stall U.S. President Donald Trump first imposed tariffs on steel and aluminum at a 25 per cent rate in March, and later raised the rate to 50 per cent earlier this month. Get breaking National news For news impacting Canada and around the world, sign up for breaking news alerts delivered directly to you when they happen. Sign up for breaking National newsletter Sign Up By providing your email address, you have read and agree to Global News' Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy 'The unjustified tariffs have delivered a significant blow to our industry,' which had previously considered the U.S. a 'destination market' for 6.5 million tonnes of Canadian steel, Cobden said. Story continues below advertisement During that time, according to the CBSA, steel producers in Canada 'have significantly dropped shipments (to the U.S.) and have experienced close to 1,000 job losses to date and are preparing for thousands more.' Global News has reached out to Industry Minister Melanie Joly's office for comment on the CBSA's latest statement. Immediately following the government's announcement last week, the CBSA and the United Steelworkers Union said in a joint statement that the measures 'fall short' of what they had been asking for. The steel industry's reaction to the government measures has contrasted with that of the Aluminum Association of Canada. 'We find that these announcements strike the right balance between sending a strong signal towards focused and accelerated negotiations and using a measured approach through adaptive counter-tariffs and reciprocal procurement policies,' president and CEO Jean Simard said in a statement last week. 2:14 Canada announces retaliatory measures on US steel, aluminum tariffs In its announcement, the government said it plans to ensure Canadian steel, as well as tariff-free products from 'reliable trading partners,' are prioritized for federal procurement and future public projects, as well as in supply chains for domestic sectors like the auto industry. Story continues below advertisement Cobden on Thursday called those long-term commitments 'laudable.' 'However, without the right border actions, our steel producers will be unable to contribute to projects around our country because we will be a significantly reduced and weakened industry.' The CBSA also praised Carney's commitment to 'adjust' Canada's counter-tariffs on U.S. steel and aluminum depending on the outcome of broader trade and security negotiations with the Trump administration. Carney and Trump set a 30-day timetable for those talks at the G7 leaders' summit last week. The government said in announcing the steel and aluminum measures that it intends to review its plan in 30 days, including input with industry groups. The prime minister also announced last Thursday the creation of two separate task forces for steel and aluminum that will meet to monitor the situation and advise the government.
CTV News
20-06-2025
- CTV News
Many Canadians rethinking summer vacation plans following political unrest with the US
Many Canadians are rethinking their summer vacation plans following the political unrest between Canada and the United States. Getaways normally planned for south of the border during the summer months are being cancelled, with some choosing to spend their vacations closer to home, where their dollar can go further as well. 'We thought about (going to the States),' said Almonte resident Laura Guindon, who was camping with her family at Splash Valley Waterpark and Resort in Cobden Friday. 'We were thinking about maybe Lake George, but with everything going on, we just we decided against it.' The waterpark, roughly 100 kilometres west of Ottawa, says it's for that very reason that it is expecting a busy summer ahead, with bookings filling up fast. 'I've had some feedback from people that have booked and said they normally travel and they're not going to this year,' said Splash Valley assistant manager Valeria Dombrowski. 'They're going to stay local. So, I believe we've seen an increase in the bookings.' Splash Valley offers a variety of accommodations on site from rough camping spots to luxury cabins. Day passes are also available for the waterpark starting at $45. Guindon says staying local alleviates the stressors of travel to the USA while allow her dollars to be spent to the fullest extent. 'Especially with the dollar, it's kind of unknown too, like, you just don't know how much it's going to be, it could change. You could book for X amount of dollars, and then you get there and the dollar changes and all of a sudden the cost is way higher than what you were expecting.' Deep in the Ottawa Valley in Beachburg, the Whitewater Inn is also seeing an uptick in bookings due to Canadians looking to stay local. Owner Cindy Jamieson, who also operates Valley Cycle Tours, says the Whitewater Inn can offer rooms under $200 a night, often beating the price of major hotels, and looking tourists to spend their money elsewhere while on vacation. 'Going out of town, the shock value is a lot,' said Jamieson, referring to hotel bills. 'So you get a lot more value for your dollar coming here, and then you have extra budget to spend on other things like renting bikes, going rafting, going river boarding, golf.' There are also opportunities to make the most of summer while staying within the city of Ottawa. Ottawa Tourism has launched the new Ottawa Pass, which allows families to visit five attractions across the city for a set price of $100. 'That's what we're trying to target, you know, giving people an affordable but fun, and vibrant vacation in Ottawa.'
Toronto Sun
04-06-2025
- Business
- Toronto Sun
Steel industry, labour leaders call for government action as U.S. tariffs spike
Published Jun 04, 2025 • 4 minute read Workers enter the ArcelorMittal Dofasco's steel manufacturing buildings in Hamilton, Ont., on June 4, 2025. Photo by COLE BURSTON / AFP via Getty Images Canada's steel industry needs the federal government to take swift action as it faces an existential threat from steeply increased U.S. tariff, said Catherine Cobden, head of the Canadian Steel Producers Association. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. THIS CONTENT IS RESERVED FOR SUBSCRIBERS ONLY Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada. Unlimited online access to articles from across Canada with one account. Get exclusive access to the Toronto Sun ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition that you can share, download and comment on. Enjoy insights and behind-the-scenes analysis from our award-winning journalists. Support local journalists and the next generation of journalists. Daily puzzles including the New York Times Crossword. SUBSCRIBE TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada. Unlimited online access to articles from across Canada with one account. Get exclusive access to the Toronto Sun ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition that you can share, download and comment on. Enjoy insights and behind-the-scenes analysis from our award-winning journalists. Support local journalists and the next generation of journalists. Daily puzzles including the New York Times Crossword. REGISTER / SIGN IN TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience. Access articles from across Canada with one account. Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments. Enjoy additional articles per month. Get email updates from your favourite authors. THIS ARTICLE IS FREE TO READ REGISTER TO UNLOCK. Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience. Access articles from across Canada with one account Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments Enjoy additional articles per month Get email updates from your favourite authors Don't have an account? Create Account 'We're going to be a deeply weakened sector in a very short period of time,' she said after the U.S. doubled its tariffs on steel and aluminum imports to 50 per cent. Industry players had hoped to get a last-minute reprieve on the U.S. metals tariffs, but when that didn't happen it sent companies scrambling, said Cobden. 'Steel was already ready and loaded, locked and loaded, and some of it even in transport, so, completely chaotic.' The higher tariffs not only make Canadian exports to the U.S. uneconomic, but will also mean Canada's domestic market could be flooded by imports from other countries also shut out of the U.S., said Cobden. 'We're going to be inundated with steel that was destined for the United States diverting into Canada. We already have an unfair trade problem here, so it's going to get much worse very, very quickly.' Your noon-hour look at what's happening in Toronto and beyond. By signing up you consent to receive the above newsletter from Postmedia Network Inc. Please try again This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. The industry association is calling on the federal government to expand an existing 25 per cent tariff on metal products finished in China to also include products from other countries made from steel melted and poured in China. The industry has long alleged that the Chinese government unfairly supports its industry to create artificially low prices. It also called for the government to fully reinstate retaliatory tariffs on U.S. steel and match the latest escalation. By reducing imports into Canada, producers here can recapture some of the domestic market, said Cobden. 'There'll still be shrinkage in the industry. We'll be weaker, but we won't be, you know, collapsed, which is where I'm afraid we're heading.' This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. Prime Minister Mark Carney said Wednesday on his way into the weekly Liberal caucus meeting in Ottawa that Canada is deep in talks with the U.S. on trade, and is still considering its response to Trump's latest escalation. 'We will take some time — not much, some time — because we are in intensive discussions right now with the Americans on our trading relationship.' Ontario Premier Doug Ford also called for full retaliatory tariffs, while Canadian Chamber of Commerce CEO Candace Liang said at a press conference that carefully considered retaliation is in order. 'In this moment it is absolutely understandable we would want to show fight,' she said in Ottawa. 'So we can look at the use of targeted counter tariffs, but be careful to maximize impact on the U.S., while minimizing impact on the home front.' This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. The aluminum industry is also being disrupted by the increased tariffs, though the higher price per kilogram of the metal makes it more economic to ship abroad. The Aluminum Association of Canada said it strongly opposed higher rates, which effectively makes Canadian exports to the U.S. economically unviable, and that industry players may be forced to diversify trade toward the European Union. The heightened tariffs will mean less demand across North America and threatens the security of the integrated supply chain, said Jean Simard, president and CEO of the association. 'It will impact workers on both sides of the border and disrupt key sectors including defense, construction and automotive,' he said in a statement. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. Canada's metal producers are already feeling the hit from both the initial 25 per cent tariffs imposed March 12, and the general uncertainty of what's to come, said Canadian Labour Congress president Bea Bruske. 'The reality is we've already seen job losses in the steel and aluminum industry, because the uncertainty is just as bad as the reality of it,' she said at the same press conference as Liang. 'And we know within the next couple of days and weeks job losses will start to accumulate, so time is absolutely critically important,' said Bruske, noting that 23,000 people work across steel industries in Canada and another 9,500 in aluminum. Cobden put the job losses at around 700 from the initial round of tariffs, while Canadian steel shipments to the U.S., where half of production goes, were down 30 per cent in April. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. Algoma Steel said in a statement that it is deeply concerned with the increased tariffs, and is advocating swift government action to support the company and the wider industry during this volatile time. Unifor said in a news release Wednesday that heightened tariffs on steel and aluminum are a direct threat to Canadian jobs and security, and also urged the federal government to act without delay to defend the industry. 'These tariffs are killing investment in our steel, aluminum, and auto sectors, and we are already seeing the consequences in lost jobs and economic instability,' said Unifor national president Lana Payne in a statement. 'We need immediate and forceful action to defend good jobs and safeguard our national economic security.' Federal politicians are set to meet industry and labour leaders Thursday who are set to press their demands directly. Cobden said the government's recent commitment to buy Canadian steel for infrastructure and defence projects is welcome, but more needs to be done. 'We applaud that, we've been looking for that for decades, but now we have the circumstance where we might not be around to serve those projects.' — With a file from David Baxter in Ottawa. Read More Celebrity Toronto & GTA Toronto Blue Jays World Olympics
Hamilton Spectator
04-06-2025
- Business
- Hamilton Spectator
Steel group calls for government to step in to protect industry as U.S. tariffs jump
TORONTO - The head of Canada's steel industry association says time is of the essence for the federal government to step in and help the industry as it faces existential threats from U.S. tariffs. U.S. President Donald Trump doubled tariffs on imported steel and aluminum to 50 per cent starting Wednesday, a punitive level that Catherine Cobden, head of the Canadian Steel Producers Association, says will essentially shut down exports to the country. Cobden says the industry had hoped for a last-minute reprieve, but when that didn't happen companies were forced to halt trucks already on route because exporting to the U.S. no longer works financially. She says that under the 25 per cent tariffs in place since March 12, the Canadian steel industry has already lost about 700 jobs and shipments were down 30 per cent in April, but the 50 per cent tariffs threaten the very existence of the industry that had been shipping half of its production to the U.S. She says the Canadian government needs to step in with higher border tariffs of its own to protect the industry from artificially cheap steel imports originating from China. Canada did put in place 25 per cent tariffs last October on steel and aluminum products coming directly from China, but Cobden says the tariffs need to be expanded to cover steel melted and poured in China but that was processed further in other countries. This report by The Canadian Press was first published June 4, 2025.
Yahoo
04-06-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Steel group calls for government to step in to protect industry as U.S. tariffs jump
TORONTO — The head of Canada's steel industry association says time is of the essence for the federal government to step in and help the industry as it faces existential threats from U.S. tariffs. U.S. President Donald Trump doubled tariffs on imported steel and aluminum to 50 per cent starting Wednesday, a punitive level that Catherine Cobden, head of the Canadian Steel Producers Association, says will essentially shut down exports to the country. Cobden says the industry had hoped for a last-minute reprieve, but when that didn't happen companies were forced to halt trucks already on route because exporting to the U.S. no longer works financially. She says that under the 25 per cent tariffs in place since March 12, the Canadian steel industry has already lost about 700 jobs and shipments were down 30 per cent in April, but the 50 per cent tariffs threaten the very existence of the industry that had been shipping half of its production to the U.S. She says the Canadian government needs to step in with higher border tariffs of its own to protect the industry from artificially cheap steel imports originating from China. Canada did put in place 25 per cent tariffs last October on steel and aluminum products coming directly from China, but Cobden says the tariffs need to be expanded to cover steel melted and poured in China but that was processed further in other countries. This report by The Canadian Press was first published June 4, 2025. Ian Bickis, The Canadian Press Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
