Prime Minister Mark Carney announced Friday a suite of new measures to support sectors of the economy hit hardest by U.S. tariffs.
The announcement includes $5 billion for a new fund to help companies pivot to new products and markets and keep skills and production in Canada, and to make them more competitive globally.
At a press conference at an aerospace plant in Mississauga, Ont., Friday morning, Carney said that the fund would be open to "all sectors, given the fact that the tariff impacts are wide-ranging across Canadian industries." He said that heavily affected sectors like steel, automobile, lumber and aluminum would have priority.
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Carney also announced a “Buy Canadian” policy for the federal government. A government backgrounder said the policy would require materials in some defence and construction procurements to come from Canadian companies. It said the policy would "initially cover Canadian steel and softwood lumber" but would allow the government to later include additional materials.
The Canadian Steel Producers Association praised the move Friday, saying in a press release that Canadian steel producers could replace more than 80 per cent of imported steel consumed in Canada.
Carney's government is also introducing new supports for the canola sector and a one-year delay to the electric vehicle sales mandate. It says it will expand support and loans for small and medium businesses, and introduce new measures to help workers acquire new skills.
Carney said tariff-exposed sectors like steel, lumber, aluminum and copper will be "central to our future competitiveness in a world of major infrastructure investment, defence and security, and that unprecedented acceleration in home building."
Carney said Canada can’t rely on trade with the U.S. as it did in the past, and his government’s new industrial strategy will build an economy that is more resilient to global shocks.
The Liberal government is in the midst of trade talks with the administration of U.S. President Donald Trump, which has imposed tariffs on much of the world.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 5, 2024.
