In the 'steel city of Canada,' Trump's tariff threats generate 'fear and confusion'
Trump backs off 50% tariff threat but U.S. says 25% will still begin Wednesday
If the goal of U.S. President Donald Trump is to create "fear and confusion" with his tariff threats, he's succeeding in the "steel city of Canada," says Frank Crowder, a Hamilton union president.
"It scares us, it scares families," said Crowder, president of United Steel Workers Local 7135, after Trump threatened to impose 50 per cent tariffs Tuesday morning. "We have no way of being prepared. The American government is just creating chaos."
Trump had escalated his war of words in response to Ontario Premier Doug Ford's imposition of a surcharge on electricity exports to several U.S. states. But by Tuesday afternoon, Ford called off his surcharge and White House trade adviser Peter Navarro said Trump would pull back on his doubling of tariffs on Canadian steel and aluminum.
However, the U.S. government still planned to place a 25 per cent tariff on all steel and aluminum imports starting Wednesday, Navarro said.
Roughly 90 per cent of Canada's steel and aluminum exports go to American companies, according to data from Statista. Hamilton is home to about 28,000 advanced manufacturing jobs, which include jobs in the steel sector, according to the local chamber of commerce. That's about 20 per cent more than the national average.
On Tuesday morning, Trump said on social media he will make Canada pay "a financial price for this so big that it will be read about in History Books for many years to come" — before the ever-evolving tariff controversy took several turns later in the day.
Ford said that after a phone call with the U.S. commerce secretary, he'd be suspending the surcharge on electricity exports.
"Folks, this has been moving at rocket speed right now," Ford told reporters.
He said he hopes to have a "productive conversation" in the coming days with American officials, but is willing to impose retaliatory measures if the trade war continues.
With the tariff threats hanging over Hamilton's head for weeks, Tuesday's turn of events seem to be injecting more uncertainty in Hamilton, where steel-making giants like Dofasco ArcelorMittal and Stelco are located.
Crowder represents workers at National Steel Car in Hamilton, down the street from Dofasco ArcelorMittal and Stelco. Elected officials and industry experts have been concerned for months of the reverberating impacts of tariffs on these major employers and on Hamilton's economy.
"We're afraid of job loss," Crowder told Radio-Canada. "You may not be directly affected by a tariff, but that person making the product now isn't spending money in your store or business."
Steel insider says 'hard to believe' we're here
Keanin Loomis, president and CEO of the Canadian Institute of Steel Construction, said Tuesday morning the industry expected tariffs to be implemented Wednesday.
"It's hard to believe we are here," he told CBC News Network, after Trump threatened to double the tariff. "It's another sad day for Canada. One thing we can take solace in is the markets have reacted."
Trump's 50 per cent tariff announcement sent the U.S. stock market plummeting, again, and consumer confidence with it, Loomis said.
Retaliatory measures are important because Americans need to feel economic pain to pressure Trump to back down, he said, supporting Ford's electricity surcharge — and U.S. media appearances.
"He has done an incredible job leading this country," Loomis said. "He is one of the most popular Canadians in the United States right now. Hopefully if there is a way to climb down from [the trade war] is through the premier."
Hamilton mayor says tariffs could have $1B impact
In Hamilton, steel is the "bedrock" of the economy, Mayor Andrea Horwath told Radio-Canada in an interview Tuesday.
Horwath is in Washington for a conference related to the health and economy of the Great Lakes. She said discussions there have turned to tariffs.
Earlier last week, the mayor said she convened a roundtable meeting that included 14 of Hamilton's largest manufacturers, the Hamilton-Oshawa Port Authority, the Hamilton International Airport, city leaders and local chambers of commerce. They met to "assess impacts and discuss strategies to protect local jobs and industries."
"We don't know what is going to happen next," Horwath said Tuesday, but tariffs on steel "will have a devastating impact on our city ... regardless of what it looks like."
Horwath said there could be a "$1-billion" impact and "thousands and thousands" of jobs on the line in manufacturing and processing workplaces.
Businesses could shut down, Horwath said, but that depends on each company and how long potential tariffs last for. There will also be "long-lasting impacts" if, for instance, tariffs lead customers to find new suppliers.
An important question to answer, she said, is how to support affected workers.
On Friday, the federal government announced a $6-billion aid package for businesses impacted by U.S. tariffs, and relaxed some employment insurance rules in an effort to increase access for people in need.
"We have tried and tested tools to get our people through the toughest of crises and we will not hesitate to use them," Labour Minister Steven MacKinnon said.
With files from Radio-Canada, John Paul Tasker, Lucas Powers, Darren Major, The Associated Press