OTTAWA — The federal government is replacing its counter-tariffs on seafood with 50 per cent levies on a series of other American goods, according to Finance Minister François-Philippe Champagne’s office.
“This decision was made in the interest of strengthening Canada’s sectors and our tariff response — and to better match the American tariffs dollar for dollar, rate for rate,” Champagne’s press secretary John Fragos wrote in a statement to CTV News, adding the federal government has been consulting with stakeholders and provinces when it comes to counter-tariff options.
Fragos also tells CTV News that the decision to remove seafood from Canada’s list of counter-tariffs was made in part to avoid giving the appearance of escalation by Canada in the face of a simmering trade conflict with the United States, as the U.S. does not tariff Canadian seafood imports.
Newly added to Canada’s list of counter-tariffs include:
- Wood charcoal;
- Printed matter, including printed pictures or photographs;
- Articles of plaster or of compositions based on plaster, including boards, sheets and tiles;
- Materials used in the conveyance or packing of goods, including bottles, flasks, jars and pots;
- And copper wire.
On Tuesday, the federal government laid out its plan for countermeasures in the ongoing trade war, and announced a $7.5-billion support package for workers and businesses.
From makeup to smartphones to kitchen appliances, Canada will hit the U.S. with dollar-for-dollar counter-tariffs targeting around 700 different American products starting Sept. 8.
After weeks of intense talks, Canada and the U.S. failed to strike a last-minute trade deal late Friday, leading to U.S. President Donald Trump’s new slate of 50 per cent tariffs on billions of dollars worth of Canadian goods to come into effect. The affected items even include those covered under the Canada-United States-Mexico Agreement (CUSMA).
Speaking to reporters in Toronto on Thursday, Champagne defended the decision to remove Canada’s tariffs on U.S. seafood, saying the federal government listened to Canadians.
“The list is in Canada’s best interest, and that happens from time to time that these lists are updated,” Champagne said.
On Tuesday, government officials told reporters that the list of tariffed items were designed to match the U.S. levies on Canadian products, with “individual product rates based on matching the U.S. rate for the same goods.”
Seafood industry ‘ecstatic’ over counter-tariff removal
Nat Richard, who represents lobster processors across Atlantic Canada, says the industry was “ecstatic” and “relieved” when the federal government removed seafood and fish products from its list of retaliatory tariffs on U.S. goods.
“We have a huge two-way trading relationship in lobster,” Richard, the executive director of the Lobster Processors Association, tells CTV News Channel. “With a tariff in either direction, or both directions, frankly, you’d completely upset the economics of that industry. So we’re really happy, we’re really pleased the federal government heard the industry and decided to course correct very rapidly.”
Canadian processors rely heavily on lobster landed in Maine and other northeastern states, Richard explains. With a large tariff, the economics of procuring on the U.S. side would have become “extremely challenging.”
“I think we would have seen multiple Canadian processors’ plants across the Maritimes and elsewhere closing,” he says, adding that it also would have had a devastating impact on U.S. harvesters.