Canada Set to Unveil Trump Tariff Response With Loans, Expanded Benefits
OTTAWA — Canada's government will lay out its first major response to the Trump administration's tariffs on Tuesday, with a support package expected to combine expanded unemployment benefits and emergency loans for businesses hit by the new U.S. duties.
Finance Minister Francois-Philippe Champagne, Industry Minister Melanie Joly, Employment Minister Patty Hajdu and Evan Solomon, the minister responsible for artificial intelligence, will present the measures at a news conference scheduled for 11 a.m. in Ottawa, according to the Finance Department.
People familiar with the planning said the package, which the government is branding the "One Canadian Economy Agenda," is expected to include expanded jobless benefits and loans for affected businesses. One person, who asked not to be named because the details are not public, compared the approach to emergency support programs Ottawa rolled out during the Covid-19 pandemic.
Tuesday's announcement is intended to blunt the impact of the 50% U.S. tariffs that took effect over the weekend on roughly $20 billion of Canadian exports. Carney said Saturday that Canada would retaliate dollar-for-dollar, targeting U.S. steel, dairy, appliances, agricultural equipment, pulp and paper and electronics. President Donald Trump responded by threatening to raise auto tariffs on Canadian vehicles and parts — a warning that cuts to the heart of one of North America's most deeply integrated industries.
Automotive supply chains are intertwined across the border, with components often crossing between Canada and the U.S. several times before a finished vehicle is assembled. Analysts say an escalation on that front would push up costs for manufacturers and disrupt plants in both countries, turning a trade dispute into an industrial crisis.
On Monday, Carney appeared to leave room for a more calibrated response. "The American economy is much, much bigger, at least for the time being, than the Canadian economy," he said in French, according to a live translator. "Because of this, it will be difficult to have dollar-for-dollar — always difficult to carry out dollar-for-dollar retaliation, so we might go the more targeted way."
He added that "everything is on the table."
Carney's office did not immediately respond to a request for comment.