Canada fights tariffs with tariffs
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This is the indicator from Planet Money, I'm Adrian Ma. The trade war between the US and Canada is entering a new phase. Back in August, President Trump slapped 50% tariffs on a range of Canadian goods, and now Canada, one of our closest trading partners, is fighting back. Today, counter tariffs, ranging from 15 to 50 percent, kick in on imports from the United States. And that'll affect everything from steel to dairy products to electronics. And so we felt like this was an appropriate time to check in with uh a friend of the show, Paul Havershroud. He hosts a podcast called Cost of Living, which is a show about money and economics from the CBC. And the CBC, for those who don't know, is the The Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, sort of like a NPR cousin to the North.
So I guess in a way, Paul, we're practically related.
We w we absolutely are. We keep talking though in like not happy family reunions. It's always it's always Hopefully we're not in like a
family feud of some kind. Like are we cool?
Oh C B C C B C and NPR are great and you and I, Adrian, are super cool.
After the break, Paul's gonna help us understand how Canadians are thinking and feeling about this situation, and tell us how Canada's trade war strategy is just starting to take shape.
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What sparked the new round of U.S.–Canada trade tariffs?
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So, Paul, the last time that we spoke, it was January 2025. There were hardly any tariffs between our countries. And now we're looking at US tariffs on more than twenty billion dollars of Canadian goods, including dairy, alcoholic beverages, cement, uh even hockey sticks. And in response, Canada has, as of this recording, put on roughly twenty billion dollars in tariffs on American goods. And so I'm wondering when it comes to US tariffs on Canadian goods, which ones are Canadians most concerned about?
Well, the most unnerved is what's happening with autos. Because really, when you look at what we call Kuzma, what you call the USMCA used to be NAFTA, our free trade deal. Really at the heart, it's an auto pact. We've had an auto pact since 1965. Both sides have agreed on it. It's done good things for our auto industries on both sides of the border, auto workers, and it really seems like What the US is coming after or what the Trump White House is coming after is our auto sector. When you say Canada's auto sector, what kinds of things are they making there? Well, we make cars and trucks here. Like we make uh the Chevy Silverado, we make some other medium and and heavy duty trucks. We have a big parts sector.
And yeah, all of that is is is being hit and adding incremental costs to the price of of cars. So with these
tariff threats coming from the US. Canada has responded. What's Canada's overall strategy with their counter
tariffs? It's kind of simple. It's just we have to stand up to the bully.
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Chapters
5 chapters
1
What is the main topic discussed in this episode?
0:01–2:16
2
What sparked the new round of U.S.–Canada trade tariffs?
2:16–5:05
3
Which Canadian goods are most vulnerable to U.S. tariffs?
5:05–7:30
4
Why are Canadian auto manufacturers especially worried about the tariffs?
7:30–9:58
5
How is Canada’s counter‑tariff strategy designed to pressure U.S. swing states?
9:58–11:01
Speakers
7 identifiedMore from The Indicator from Planet Money
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