Toronto: Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney on Wednesday said that US President Donald Trump’s auto tariffs are a „direct attack“ on his country and that
Toronto: Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney on Wednesday said that US President Donald Trump’s auto tariffs are a “direct attack” on his country and that the trade war is hurting Americans, noting that American consumer confidence is at a multi-year low.
Trump said earlier on Wednesday that he was placing 25 per cent tariffs on auto imports and, to underscore his intention, he stated “This is permanent”.
“This is a very direct attack. We will defend our workers. We will defend our companies. We will defend our country,” Carney responded.
Carney said he needs to see the details of Trump’s executive order before taking retaliatory measures.
He also called the move unjustified and said he will leave the election campaign to go to Ottawa on Thursday to chair his special Cabinet committee on US relations.
Carney earlier announced a USD $1.4 billion “strategic response fund” that will protect Canadian auto jobs affected by Trump’s tariffs.
Autos are Canada’s second largest export, and Carney noted it employs 125,000 Canadians directly and almost another 500,000 in related industries.
“Canada will be there for auto workers,” he said.
Trump previously granted a one-month exemption on his stiff new tariffs on imports from Mexico and Canada for US automakers.
The president has plunged the US into a global trade war — all while on-again, off-again new levies continue to escalate uncertainty.
