Business associations on both sides of the border are sounding the alarm over the impact of U.S. President Donald Trump's incoming tariffs on the North American economy.
Trump is putting a 25 per cent tariff on Canadian goods and a 10 per cent tariff on Canadian energy starting Tuesday, and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said Canada will hit back with counter-tariffs starting the same day.
The Residential Construction Council of Ontario condemned Trump’s tariffs, saying they will affect billions of dollars of trade in construction materials alone.
“The move is reckless and will cause economic hardship in both the U.S. and Canada,” RESCON president Richard Lyall said in a statement Sunday.
“Our countries and supply chains are intertwined and dependent on each other, so nobody wins in a tariff war,” he said.
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Lyall said the promised tariffs are much more significant than the tariffs that were imposed by the previous Trump administration in March 2018 on certain imports of steel and aluminum from Canada.
The council president said these tariffs will hike costs and cause a further slowdown in residential construction, which will “exacerbate an already dire housing affordability crisis.”
U.S. Chamber of Commerce senior vice president John Murphy said Trump's tariffs are unprecedented, will upend supply chains and will only raise prices for American families.
Canadian Chamber of Commerce president Candace Laing said the incoming tariffs are "profoundly disturbing" and will drastically increase the cost of everything for everyone, hurting families, communities and businesses.
The Canadian Chamber has estimated that a 25 per cent tariff across the board could cost Canadian households an average of $1,900 per year.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced Saturday night that Canada will retaliate with 25 per cent tariffs on $155 billion worth of American goods, including alcohol, furniture and natural resources.
But much of Canada's plan to fight back remains unknown — Trudeau did not state whether Canada would cut energy to the U.S., and he said measures that involve one region of the country more than others will be done "carefully" and with the full partnership of regional leaders.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Feb. 2, 2025.
