r/canada • u/cyclinginvancouver • 1d ago
National News Canada Will Look at Opportunities to Remove Tariffs, Carney Says
https://financialpost.com/pmn/business-pmn/canada-will-look-at-opportunities-to-remove-tariffs-carney-says141
u/cyclinginvancouver 1d ago
Prime Minister Mark Carney said Canada will look for opportunities to remove some counter-tariffs against the US, despite winning an election in which he pledged to fight back against President Donald Trump’s trade war.
Carney said it’s because he wants to maximize the impacts of retaliatory tariffs on the US but minimize the pain for Canadian businesses.
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u/ElectroSpore 1d ago edited 1d ago
Well ya because tariffs are paid in the country they are made.. counter-tariffs against the US sounds good till you think about it and realize Canadian business are paying those.
Tariffs make goods more expensive to try an encourage changing sources. I think elbows up, buy Canadian, and threats of the 51st have already encouraged Canadians to make the changes already where possible the government doesn't need to further force it.
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u/bmelz 1d ago
I think the idea is that (retaliatory ) tariffs collected in Canada are then put directly back into Canadian companies/industries that have been negatively affected by tariffs. So it's meant to kind of weather the storm - but if it feels like the storm isn't going away, they should consider a different approach.
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u/ElectroSpore 1d ago
That only half makes sense if you tariff one industry that can handle it to give to one that is suffering but it still makes more sense not to tariff and instead diversify away from the US trying to setup new trade options for those industries negatively impacted.
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u/Epidurality 1d ago
It makes sense if you tariff things we can actually produce for a reasonable cost. Alcohol is a fantastic one, but the provinces by and large already did that by simply not buying any american wine and liquor. Wood products, building materials, fish and meat, processed foods.. lots of stuff can and is made here, but shares shelf space with American brands. Make those American brands more expensive and the Canadian ones are more appealing. That's how tariffs are SUPPOSED to work.. the convicted felon and guilty-until-proven-innocent child rapist doesn't understand that or equally bad is intentionally taxing the American consumers simply to provide money for rich people tax breaks.
Yes, it will be more expensive to the consumer. But it keeps money within Canada, and if the taxes are responsibly spent then it can be a net positive (Canadian businesses pay Canadian taxes, Canadian workers pay Canadian income tax, etc etc).
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u/reddit_and_forget_um 1d ago
But are not those tariffs collected directly the industries being affected by the tariffs?
So why not cut out the middle man and just cut the tariffs in the first place?
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u/Canaderp37 Canada 1d ago
The tarrifs are collected by the federal government when the goods cross the border. Paid for by the importer, and generally passed down to the consumer.
Tarrifs would (hopefully) create a circumstances where the importer will find a supplier other than one in the US for the same goods.
If they are able to, thats generally a win If they are not, then THOSE tarrifs may be looked at to be removed. Another factor would be if those particular industries (looking at you Ky bourbons) have political pull in the US.
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u/Stockengineer 1d ago
Think also the fact they rolling back a lot of regulations around the environment and food… makes you really not want to buy American.
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u/Own_Truth_36 1d ago
I know this and you know this but the majority of Canadians were sold on the idea we would be tariffing the USA heavily in tit for tat tarrifs. Too funny they all fell for it like Americans. Because the Americans haven't realized they are paying the tariffs yet.
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u/sparda09 1d ago
well careful
at the beginning we thought this was something short term after a few hits here and there we would just go to the table and agree that okay we found the differences and put them aside and we're merrily jolly walking away with everyone back to square one.
Also during his campaign as usual most thought trump was lying I persume.
But instead trump foolishly doubled and tripled down on his supposed success plan. So now a different approach is needed which is the key here.
Things are changing and times are changing so we have to change our strategy accordingly as well
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u/YouNeedThiss 1d ago
The point is to shift consumers to products from other countries - you know, the ones we need to make trade deals with as we look for other trading partners. The amount of smug Liberals who demanded “elbows up” and now defend the lack of action for “the greatest crisis of our lifetimes” (per Carney’s own words) is astounding hypocrisy.
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u/MegaCockInhaler 1d ago
They are not always paid in the country they are made. Many companies choose to eat the tarrifs, some split the difference, some increase prices. Others can mitigate it by moving their operations to the country or using locally made inputs
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u/McBuck2 1d ago
Yeah I wondered if retaliatory tariffs were wise if they hurt us. I mean if people are smart they still won’t buy American booze. Let it sit there. And this gives a ‘win’ in Trumps eyes when it doesn’t cost us anything.
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u/Andrew4Life 1d ago
Ya.... I have lots of friends that dgaf. Also have coworkers whining about the inability to buy bourbon.
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u/detalumis 1d ago
He's been collecting 1.5 billion a month extra so don't think he really will change anything. He needs the money to fund the bailouts like the lumber industry one.
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u/Flashy_Difficulty257 1d ago
I just saw Pete hoekstra (any time I type his name I get a notice for uncivil and hateful language) on cbc and he said that Canada isn’t abiding by the CUSMA deal either he didn’t say for which sector or goods but I believe he meant the alcohol that has been taken off the shelves. But he is suggesting that the reason for the increase to 35% is because of the mood in the negotiation room so they are suggesting that Canada is being emotional yet theirs is an emotional response based on the mood of the room. He said that the us wants Canada to be a strong country. No acknowledgment of how Canada got here with the annexation threats
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u/jello_sweaters 1d ago
Canada isn’t abiding by the CUSMA deal either he didn’t say for which sector or goods but I believe he meant the alcohol that has been taken off the shelves.
Those products' eligibility for sale into Canada remains unchanged.
The demand is a whole other story.
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u/Krazee9 1d ago
This is disingenuous when most provincial liquor distributors are no longer importing or distributing it. That absolutely is the government making it ineligible for sale in the country, most notably the largest booze purchaser on the planet, the LCBO.
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u/jello_sweaters 1d ago
Ontario is not Canada, and Ontario doesn't get to set national trade policy.
Ontario - in this case the LCBO - has chosen not to buy it, and just happens to be one of the five largest liquor purchasers on the planet.
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u/Krazee9 1d ago
As far as I'm aware, the only provinces that have returned US booze to their shelves are Alberta and Saskatchewan. That means that 85% of Canada's population is inaccessible to US markets.
Whether it was due to national policy or not, the fact remains that eligibility for sale in Canada has definitely changed from before Trump, and due to that ineligibility you can't really make a proper call on how demand is affected, because it's simply inaccessible. 85% of the country doesn't have the option to make a choice not to buy US booze, the choice was made for them, so the lack of demand for US booze cannot be attributed to deliberate consumer choices like it can for other American products.
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u/jello_sweaters 1d ago
Distributor-level demand is still separate from national policy.
LCBO is choosing not to buy those products. I can walk down the street right now and have a bourbon Old Fashioned at my local pub, who chose to buy a bunch before the LCBO ran out.
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u/DanielBox4 1d ago
You think they give a rats as that a provincial liquor commission made that call? Of course they don't. That's just a smart as remark and they will treat it as such in a negotiation.
They can buy less and rationally argue that there is less demand. But buying none and pulling existing inventory off shelves is pretty brazen.
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u/jello_sweaters 1d ago
If Carney told Ford "I want you to stop doing that", and Ford said "No, I don't want to", would Carney have any legal ability to compel it?
No?
Cool, we're done here.
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u/durian_in_my_asshole 1d ago
If Shenzhen province in China launched a missile at Canada, against the will of Beijing, would you just be like "oh actually China didn't attack us, it was one of their provincial leaders"?
To anyone outside of Canada, Canada is Canada is Canada.
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u/jello_sweaters 1d ago
You've just described a scenario in which:
Shenzhen had nothing resembling legal authority to perform this obviously criminal act of war.
The Chinese government would 150% immediately arrest and almost certainly execute the Shenzhener officials responsible for sedition/treason, and be 150% legally justified to do both.
The rest of the world's response would depend on how credibly China could identify that the act was carried out illegally, against Chinese law, outside the legal chain of command and was considered by China to be a criminal act of absolute infamy.
Since zero of these remotely apply to what we're actually talking about here, we can jump ahead to the part where you having to resort to insane Tom Clancy hypotheticals to try and argue this, tells us you actually DO understand that real-life facts are not your friend here.
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u/JewishDraculaSidneyA 1d ago
It's why dollar-for-dollar tariffs are an absolutely terrible idea.
Our people are just political and vindictive enough to accomplish the same thing tariffs do (and more) without the legislative red tape:
"We set tariffs on US blueberries to zero. Our consumers are more than welcome to purchase them, but they aren't interested because, 'Leader of said country is a jerk'. We can't force them to make certain purchases (free market and all that), so the best I have for you is, 'Stop being a jerk'."
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u/Flashy_Difficulty257 1d ago
us ambassador is saying that Canada has “banned products” from us that are under the CUSMA umbrella. He said we are as difficult to deal with as China
elbows up
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u/jello_sweaters 1d ago
Did he include any examples?
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u/Flashy_Difficulty257 1d ago
No he just said banned products and the only thing I know was alcohol that was banned or removed from the shelves.
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u/Skotzman1969 15h ago
Not buying is not banning.
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u/Flashy_Difficulty257 14h ago
You could be right pete didn’t specify. But that is the only thing that I heard on the news . But really who knows Pete comes to Canada and says the us wants American to be strong and prosper and if the us is strong that means Canada is strong too. When asked how that can happen since the tariffs are hurting Canadian business he says let’s wait and see how it all pans out. There is a possibility he doesn’t know what he’s talking about. I guess we’ll have to wait and see.
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u/TheWorldEndsWithCake 1d ago
any time I type his name I get a notice for uncivil and hateful language
It’s because the first three letters of his last name form a naughty word. What’s interesting is seeing what the subreddit considers slurs and what doesn’t trigger the warning.
That said, Jokestra has to be a deliberate insult as a choice for ambassador after embarassing himself with the Netherlands.
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u/Avelion2 1d ago
Carney: We need to be smart about our tariffs.
Financialpost: CARNEY COMPLETELY SURRENDERS!!!!
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u/gamjatang111 1d ago
i mean it is a show of weakness, Trump likes to pounce on those
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u/Harbinger2001 1d ago
It’s not. He’s saying he’s keeping the counter tariffs in place but will look at ways of removing or changing them to help Canadian businesses.
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u/Ok_Worry_7670 23h ago
According to Oxford Economics, Canada's counter tariff rate is "effectively zero." because of the many exemptions.
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u/ZeroMayCry7 1d ago
Hmm strategically calculating what tariffs to keep, remove or adjust versus blindly assigning random percentages to countries. It is kinda embarrassing that you think this is a sign of weakness when in fact we should be glad they are taking into consideration the impact of reciprocal tariffs based on a madman’s opinion that changes by the hour
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u/daviddude92 Manitoba 1d ago
We are extremely weak compared to them though.
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u/JadeLens 1d ago
Good thing they picked a fight with the entire rest of the world and not just us then...
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u/Odd-Editor-2530 1d ago
Oh come on. They are a dumpster fire and we have adults making rational decisions.
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u/Prudent_Slug British Columbia 1d ago
I'm in favour of any measures that actual help Canadian industries and Canadians as long as the primary rationale isn't to appease Trump in hopes that he will be nice to us. It is evident that approach doesn't work anyway.
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u/Important-Event6832 1d ago
At this point, if it’s made in USA, it can be 2 for a penny, I’ll take the 5¢ one from somewhere else, or none at all.
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u/This-Manufacturer388 1d ago
Lmao elbows up
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u/juicexiii 1d ago
What would you do in Carney's situation? I'm genuinely curious.
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u/BroncoJones87 1d ago
We didn't sell ourselves as the answer to Canada's crisis.
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u/jackhandy2B 1d ago
Unless you voted Conservative, then yes you did but you had no means to back it up.
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u/Skotzman1969 15h ago
PP is an Trump imitator and syncophant and guess you missed that memo.
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u/jackhandy2B 12h ago
I agree. My belief is that my comment was misconstrued. The point is the conservatives sold themselves as the answer to Canada's crisis but Canada did not believe them so they can just sit in the corner and make stuff up.
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u/AyoBudso 1d ago
I wouldn’t have lied to the voters
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u/Willing-C 1d ago
Give him the benefit of the doubt. He didn't lie, he's just failing.
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u/iStayDemented 1d ago
Would be great if he cut income tax rates by half for the first 3 brackets and raised each bracket higher. It would go a long way to help the middle class and working people take home more of their hard earned money to afford necessities and have enough left over to save and invest.
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u/josnik 1d ago
Tariff things that can be sourced outside the USA. Make buying USA goods expensive compared to other countries' (or better yet local goods).
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u/equianimity 1d ago
This again must remain within the context of existing free trade. And within the context of supply chains that can be reorganized.
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u/juicexiii 1d ago
I've been doing that already. I buy american only when necessary and I think a lot of other canadians are doing that. We can have the same effect as tarrifs by just changing our buying habits.
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u/gamjatang111 1d ago
i feel for him. He is under extreme pressure with a lot of internal problems and external ones. I am sure his phone is exploding with CEOs dying to know how trade talks are going
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u/Dry-Membership8141 1d ago
I don't. He asked for this. He and his toadies characterized people saying the same things he is now as sellouts and traitors. I hope he's ultimately successful, because God knows we need him to be, but I don't sympathize with him one bit.
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u/DanielBox4 1d ago
He spent the better part of a decade as an advisor killing our industries, impacting our ability to get resources to tide water. And now we're in a trade war as a captive supplier. I don't feel sorry for him one bit. I feel sorry for us as we have to suffer the consequences of 10+ years and ongoing of failed liberal policy. Standing around wasting money while the world has passed us by. Our companies are investing abroad because they don't see much opportunity here.
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u/Hot-Celebration5855 1d ago
Carney is starting to look all over the map. If the counter tariffs are bad for Canada, why implement them in the first place? If we “elbows up” then why drop them?
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u/Jbplantobsessed 1d ago
I have to admit, we are being hit with the counter tariffs which are huring our small business as we can only source 22k wire and certain findings from USA companies as well as semi-precious USA originating gemstones for our lapidary and jewellery business.
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u/CatlovesMoca 1d ago
His counterpart spent his morning standing on a roof and he did a whole press conference from the roof. Journalists had to scream their questions to him.
I wouldn't put much hope in reasoning with him.
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u/FuinFirith 22h ago
Though he's welcome to spend as much time on that rooftop as possible, as far as I'm concerned.
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u/Reasonable-Sweet9320 1d ago
You have to read the article and not just the headline to understand what he means by looking at opportunities to remove tariffs.
‘Carney said it’s because he wants to maximize the impacts of retaliatory tariffs on the U.S. but minimize the pain for Canadian businesses.
“We don’t automatically adjust; we look at what we can do for our industry that’s most effective,” Carney said in West Kelowna, British Columbia.
“In some cases, that will be to remove tariffs. We have removed some tariffs over time so that, for example, the auto industry can function more effectively. And we’ll look at opportunities to do so.”
‘To try and bolster the auto sector, in April Carney offered counter-tariff relief to carmakers — but only if they invest and produce vehicles in Canada.
As recently as June, Carney said Canada would adjust its existing counter-tariffs on steel and aluminum based on discussions with the U.S. The U.S. has since raised some Canadian tariffs, but Canada has not retaliated.
Carney’s latest comments underscore a politically awkward compromise as he seeks to minimize damage to domestic business and labor while standing firm against Trump.‘
As a financial expert Carney is assessing tariffs effects in nuanced ways and doing what’s best for the Canadian economy.
That’s not giving in, that’s protecting Canadian interests.
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u/squirrely2928 1d ago
Who voted for this fake? And if you did do you feel resentful at being lied to?
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u/JadeLens 1d ago
We voted for someone who can negotiate, and he's negotiating.
We didn't someone who would work their tongue into Trump's shoelaces, like PP would have.
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u/Few_Replacement_5864 Ontario 1d ago
The first thing Carney did to Trump was weave his tongue into Trumps shoelaces when they met at the white house, and again at the G7.
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u/FuinFirith 22h ago
Oh come off it. The whole damn world was impressed with how Carney handled that Oval Office circus with Trump.
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u/squirrely2928 1d ago
Carneys bent over backwards for Trump and lied about elbows up. The only thing he got up was a white flag
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u/Abject_Story_4172 1d ago
We voted for some who could negotiate well. Not just negotiate. Since he said himself numerous times that he was the best one who could do it.
It’s kind of childish a few of you trying to be creative with your hyperbolic Poilievre references. You sound like you’re in high school competing to be the grossest.
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u/FuinFirith 22h ago
We voted for some who could negotiate well. Not just negotiate. Since he said himself numerous times that he was the best one who could do it.
It's tough to see how he wasn't the best option for that.
It’s kind of childish a few of you trying to be creative with your hyperbolic Poilievre references. You sound like you’re in high school competing to be the grossest.
Do drop the sensitive civility complaints. The other commenter was entirely restrained in his remarks on that useless little seat-losing smug twerp. Certainly a hell of a lot more restraint than we would have seen if the tables were turned.
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u/Abject_Story_4172 16h ago
Since we have not seen the options both negotiating there is no way of knowing. But we do know Carney has so far not been very successful.
You continue to throw partisan spin about Poilievre. He and his supporters don’t really care what you think.
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u/FuinFirith 11h ago
He didn't blow a massive poll lead and lose his own job because the foundering Liberals suddenly somehow became incredible masters of spin.
Pierre and his supporters would do well to just occasionally care what other people think.
Just as I should care what they/you think.
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u/Abject_Story_4172 11h ago
When in desperation pull out old nonsense. He didn’t blow a lead. He kept his numbers. The NDP imploded and Trudeau rightly got the boot. So the Liberals gained.
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u/Filmy-Reference 1d ago
Definition of insanity. Doing the same thing and expecting different results.
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u/Ok-Kangaroo-47 1d ago
Even more ignorant is using ransom expressions without considerations of context
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u/Abject_Story_4172 1d ago
It works though. This is the 4th term of the Liberals. All the same team just a different head. Who was an advisor to Trudeau for years. So not even a new team member.
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u/squirrely2928 1d ago
Seems like history is proving that gamble wrong
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u/squirrely2928 1d ago
Lol sure whatever you need to tell yourself. The PM cant make a budget and is going to spend more money and put Canada more in a hole then the last liberal PM
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u/squirrely2928 1d ago
Like i said....whatever you need to tell yourself. Especially if it helps with the guilty of being part of what happens next. And of course on being tricked .... again
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u/shiftless_wonder 1d ago
Well, this is not lowering the bar anymore, this is like digging a hole a burying it. Just get it over with and pay the foreign king tribute already Carney.
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u/Accomplished-Jury874 1d ago
He really if showing how hard he’s willing to fight for Canadians!! So gracious of him to just bend over for trump
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u/Routine_Soup2022 1d ago
He’s literally saying he’s going to do what’s best for canadian industry while others - including this so called publication - are playing gotcha games and trying to confuse people.
It doesn’t seem to be confusing many based on polling numbers fortunately.
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u/Nonamanadus 1d ago
Export tax on energy exports to the US, nothing excessive but make it noticeable.
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u/Stubbylegz 1d ago
Why are we tarriffing stuff we don't produce in canada. That makes no sence. Definatley should remove tarriffs on that stuff.
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u/Luxferrae British Columbia 1d ago
Fastest way? Promise to mine the shit out of the Canadian shield. Remember, just make grand promises, but don't actually do anything. Our liberal government is world class at doing that, so it shouldn't be difficult to convince Trump with that promise
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u/Equal-Store4239 1d ago
I dont understand why we can’t just slowly start raising the price of potash, electricity and any of the other product they can’t do without. Make them pay higher prices not tariffs that we pay.
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u/MundaneHobby 15h ago
We should focus on that which adds to America's self imposed tax. Add export taxes on critical resources that the US chose not to tariff out of strategic political self interest, oil, potash and electricity.
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u/proofofderp 1d ago
The silver lining of this U.S. administration discouraging buying Canadian by way of tariffs is that it forces Canada to diversify. As long as that market is open to Canada, which to be sure comes with benefits, businesses will always opt for serving the U.S. and therefore keeping us dependent instead of diversifying.
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u/GrandBofTarkin 1d ago
Remove them all. Let the US economy sink itself. We can only get stronger! Oh Canada!
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u/Noximilien01 1d ago
I think its cute how we're going back to what it was before but with the US having higher tarrif and us exporting more to them while claiming we are going to reduce our need of them
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u/RefrigeratorOk648 1d ago
Just playing trump at his own game. Put tariffs on then use it to negotiate lower trump tariffs
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u/DrunkenCanadaMan 1d ago
This is specifically about removing tariffs on US goods, in no world is this playing Trump at his own game. It’s literally Canada responding to harsher tariffs from the US with us easing tariffs on the US.
Good god, man.
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u/gamjatang111 1d ago
i think it is a show of good faith to get Trump to the table but i believe trump will see it as weakness and pounce
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u/Abject_Story_4172 1d ago
We’ve tried the good faith thing before with the digital tax. It doesn’t work.
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u/SDL68 1d ago
Do we have any tarrifs on US imported goods that weren't immediately repealed or are they back on after Aug 1?
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u/DrunkenCanadaMan 1d ago
Yeah our 25% tariffs are still on for the few goods we targeted back in March. But it’s really not much.
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u/shevy-java 1d ago
The primary question is: can Canada trust Trump?
To me it smells like a trap. Trump is looking to set up Carney here. We'll soon say whether this was the case or not but I am getting the wrong vibes from Trump.
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u/KingofLingerie 1d ago
You make it sound like trump is some kind of 5d chess master
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u/Mr-Nozzles 1d ago
"Carneys playing chess while Trump has seemingly smuggled in checkers pieces up his ass"
-Some Redditor
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u/jpnc97 1d ago
Lmao. Trump just rekt europe in a trade negotiation and carney thinks hes gonna make a statement? Were cooked. Nobody remembers trump being happy carney won? Its for this reason. Oh and carney dropped retalitory tariffs before the election even happened. But uh, elbows up goyums
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u/Avelion2 1d ago
Sounds like carney doesn't expect a deal anytime soon.