Ottawa has unveiled its lengthy list of American goods being targeted by new retaliatory tariffs coming into effect September 8.
The clap-back comes after President Trump implemented 50 per cent tariffs on $28 billion worth of Canadian goods on Saturday.
In response, Canada says it is imposing tariffs on 26.7 billion dollars of American imports, including seafood, certain paper products, furniture, apparel, tools, motorcycles, certain dairy products, cosmetics and some lumber products.
These new tariffs will range between 15, 25 and 50 per cent. Jobs Minister Patty Hajdu says Canada is not taking these attacks on our economy lying down.
“Canadians are fighters who stand up for their businesses, their families, and their communities. We’re making sure that the tools we need to pivot to new markets, to change products or services and come out stronger than ever are there now and for as long as it takes to weather the storm.”
Hajdu says alongside the new tariffs, Ottawa also announced $7.5 billion in support for impacted workers and industries, meant to particularly support small and medium-sized enterprises across the country.
A portion of the money will go toward expanding changes to EI first announced in September 2025 that were set to expire October 10.
“The one-week EI waiting period will continue to be waived so that claimants can continue to receive benefits the minute they lose their job.”
Other measures include extending permission for workers to receive EI payments without first having to use up their separation payments until Oct. 10, 2027; giving long-tenured employees an extra 20 weeks of EI until June of next year; allowing workers that have voluntarily left their jobs to collect EI without penalty; and helping connect unemployed or underemployed workers with major projects that need staff.
The Liberal government is also investing $2 billion to create the Canada Strong Diversification Fund, which intends to “support tariff-impacted companies with shovel-ready projects that support ongoing capital maintenance, including medium-sized firms.”
Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre shared his thoughts on the plan, Tweeting that he’d like to see more.
He says the “plan should scrap gas taxes until Canada Day, have zero capital gains tax on reinvesting in Canada, end the industrial carbon tax, green-light the 500 projects waiting for federal permits, and have ZERO sales tax on Canadian-made cars.
Premier Scott Moe has responded to Ottawa’s plan to combat U.S. tariffs, saying that it is focused, targeted, and he supports it.
The comment from Moe adds that the new counter-tariffs cover about $1.5 billion, or 11.3 per cent, of Saskatchewan’s annual imports from the US.
The Province will now be “analyzing the counter-tariff list closely and working with affected industries to determine its potential impact on jobs and consumer prices, while also reviewing the federal government’s support measures to ensure they work for Saskatchewan businesses and workers.”
He admits that tariffs hurt workers on both sides of the border, and the ultimate goal is to get back to a free and fair trade relationship with the US.
The list of American goods being tariffed can be accessed here.
