BUFFALO, N.Y. (WKBW) — President Donald Trump said he's looking at imposing 25% tariffs on all aluminum and steel imports. That will include our neighbors, Canada and Mexico.
Here's how people from both sides are responding to this.
Scott Laing
"It's kind of the building blocks of houses, office complexes. Whether it's the steel beams, whether it's the aluminum going into our very soda cans. There are a lot of these components that are used in the manufacturing process where it's probably going to have maybe a month lead time. It's going to take a little bit before we start to see that, as inputs get changed," Laing, a clinical assistant professor of finance at the University of Buffalo School of Management said. "And again, if you're the manufacturer, you might be bulk ordering a bunch of this stuff hoping to get a reduced rate on the tariffs. You don't necessarily know the future outlook."
He added that in the United States, we have a decent amount of steel manufacturing facilities and that it's not as much of a concern but that aluminum is a bit more Canada-dependent.
Rick Smith
"We probably buy 20 to 25% of carbon steel from Canada. Millions of dollars," Rick Smith, president of Rigidized Metals Corporation said. "And we also trade with Canada."
Doug Ford
"This is the next four years. I've been saying it. We're gonna face this for four years. Shifting goalposts constantly and constant chaos all designed to hurt our economy," Ontario Premier Doug Ford said. "We're gonna react hard and we're gonna react fast."
Canadian Steel Producers Association also released the following statement:
We are deeply concerned that US President Donald Trump is again threatening more tariffs on Canada, this time directly targeting the steel and aluminum sectors. While the details remain unclear, we will analyze the President's order once it is released and have more to say at that time. When President Trump implemented tariffs on Canadian steel in 2018, we saw massive disruptions and harm on both sides of the border, hurting both America and Canada. The Canada - US economy is so highly integrated; with $20B in trade of steel between our two countries. 40% of Canada's steel imports comes from the United States. This at a time when Canada has worked tremendously hard to align our trade policy with the United States to protect both markets from unfair trade that threaten jobs and communities. For example, Canada implemented its own Section 53 tariffs on Chinese steel imports and a monitoring system of all imports to ensure it can identify the country of melt and pour. While the target of Canadian steel and aluminum is completely baseless and unwarranted, we must retaliate immediately. We are urgently demanding that the Government of Canada act again with resolve and purpose to combat this threat and ensure any measure taken against our sector is met with retaliatory measures and action to offset the devastating impacts tariffs would have on our sector and our workers.
Congressman Tim Kennedy shared:
It has been less than two weeks since President Trump promised a 30-day delay on the implementation of tariffs on Canadian imports, but once again he has gone back on his word, implementing global steel and aluminum tariffs that directly hurt our Western New York economy. Global trade is complex, but I believe that even the architects of Project 2025 can figure out the difference between Canada and China. These tariffs will raise the price of vehicles, the cost of basic household goods, and will directly negatively impact local manufacturers and their hardworking employees.
The time for games is over: let’s get to the business of governing, of growing our economy, and of strengthening our alliances.