Canada to target steel originating from China with new tariffs

Steel originating in China will be subjected to higher tariffs to try and prevent steel dumping amid U.S. President Donald Trump's ongoing global trade war, Prime Minister Mark Carney said Wednesday.

The prime minister toured a steel manufacturing company in Hamilton before announcing a suite of measures to protect the Canadian steel industry.

Those include a new 25 per cent tariff on all steel products that contain metal melted and poured in China by the end of the month.

Canada will also impose import quotas based on how much steel was imported from each country in 2024, with countries that don't have a free-trade agreement with Canada already in place impacted more than those that do.

Imports that exceed these quotas will be charged a 50 per cent tariff rate.

Carney said Canada's steel industry will be among the most impacted by the ongoing global rearrangement of markets because it is one of the most open in the world for steel and the industry must be protected.

"Imports supply almost two-thirds of current Canadian consumption of steel, compared to less than one-third for the United States and less than one-sixth for the European Union," Carney said.

"Over time, we've become too dependent on the United States as our biggest customer with more than 90 per cent of our steel exports going south of the border," he added.

The prime minister said Canada must rely more on "Canadian steel, for Canadian projects."

Carney says there are no immediate changes to U.S. counter tariffs as Canada continues to seek a new economic deal with Trump by Aug. 1.

Other supports for the steel sector include $70 million to provide employment insurance and retraining for up to 10,000 steelworkers, prioritizing Canadian steel in public projects and making it easier for steel companies to get low interest financing through the Large Enterprise Tariff Loan program.

Picture Courtesy: THE CANADIAN PRESS/Chris Young