The federal government is not considering dropping tariffs it imposed last year on Chinese electric vehicles (EVs), steel and aluminum, despite Beijing’s retaliation and U.S. President Donald Trump’s decision to launch a trade war with Canada, according to the industry minister.
Ottawa imposed a 100 per cent import tax on Chinese EVs and a 25 per cent import tariff on Chinese steel and aluminum last October. Beijing retaliated over the weekend by imposing nearly $4 billion in tariffs on Canadian agricultural products, including canola oil and pork.
"We’re going to stand strong,” said Francois-Philippe Champagne, minister of innovation, science and industry, in an interview with Vassy Kapelos on CTV News Channel’s Power Play. “We want to protect our industry. We want to protect our workers. We want to protect our communities.”
The federal government, following the lead of then-U.S. President Joe Biden’s administration, imposed a 100 per cent import tax on EVs produced in China in October of last year, accusing Beijing of “distorting global trade” by exporting EVs at “unfairly low prices.”
Ottawa also imposed a 25 per cent import tax on Chinese-made steel and aluminum last October, accusing China of “pervasive subsidization” of its steel and aluminum industry.
In the wake of Trump’s decision to launch a trade war with Canada and China’s decision to impose new tariffs on Canadian products, B.C. Premier David Eby urged the federal government to rethink its tariff policy with all countries, including China.
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Nothing shows true commitment to fighting climate change/global warming like blocking affordable electric vehicles and the solar panels to charge them, while giving billions to oil companies for more pipelines and sending the RCMP to terrorize land and water defenders.
The oligarchs are incinerating the planet for greed and Canada is complicit.
I think the argument is to protect Canadian jobs and the billions they’ve invested in EV production here. Which would totally disappear since Chinese EVs are so cheap due to the CCP direct funding to it making the market here non competitive. I just don’t see the oligarch argument here.
. I just don’t see the oligarch argument here.
I guess you skipped the part about funding pipelines and hounding protesters with the RCMP, both benefiting the oligarchs in big oil.
I mean, it’s kind of a non-sequitur here, on the subject of Chinese EVs.
So we will continue with our current sugar daddy even though he beats us?
Not doing things he’s accidentally right about would be an overcorrection.
The tariffs on Chinese EVs where not Trump.
Saskatchewan’s DUI hire is going to have a hissy fit about this he is so mad about the Chinese tariff. In fact he is so mad that he will do nothing except maybe go on vacation down in the US or party with some people in Texas.
Or he will wait for Smith to tell him what to do.
No one wants and needs ‘affordable’ EVs made with slavery-like labour.
Do we really need Chinese EVs though? Both Kia and Hyundai, for example, make good EVs at a good price. Im not sure I would trust a Chinese made EV. Maybe thats a bias but do they meet Canadian standards?
To be sold here, they would have to meet all Canadian safety standards. This is a non-issue. Lots of vehicles sold here are, or have been built in China. The Honda Fit is a notable example. Plus, China makes many components and complex assemblies for most cars built these days, even for the high end “luxury” brands.
I have a Hyundai EV and I love it. It’s a fantastic vehicle.
But also, the Chinese EVs are extremely cheap relative to these. If they are trustworthy or safe or good is open to interpretation but they have been extremely popular in Australia for example.
My concern is that we’re antagonizing a potential trade ally to protect a domestic industry which feels to me like it cannot thrive in the medium and long-term. It relies too much on the Americans and they have been unreliable and chaotic which is bad for an integrated production system.
Regardless of what they are going to do, now seems like the time to publicly muse “we are reconsidering these tariffs, since the US is unreliable at the moment”.
Play the same game as Trump: make stupid statements and see what falls out.
To what end? All that will do is increase volatility, discourage investment and tank the stock market.
It’s a bargaining chip against the US: the more trade Canada has with the rest of the world, the less reliant we are on them. It would also shrink the market for US vehicles. Saying we’ll keep the tariff is an easy concession to give in the trade war.
I really want a BYD dolphin actually. Would be cool to re-tool all the car part factories that will be empty cause the US companies are leaving - to EVs
Yeah. If BYD wants to take over a car plant or something, I’m sure something could be worked out.
It would almost certainly end up costing as much as a domestic EV already does. Cheap Chinese labour and government subsidies are what makes them so competitive.
What ‘domestic ev’s do we even have?
China set for rapeseed meal shortage after 100% duty on top supplier Canada
China is likely to face a supply shortage of rapeseed meal by the third quarter of this year as Beijing’s tariffs on shipments from top exporter Canada disrupt trade and as alternative sources are unlikely to make up the deficit […]
Rapeseed is an oilseed crop which is processed into oil for cooking and a variety of other products, including renewable fuels, while the remaining rapeseed meal is used as high-protein animal feed and fertilizer […]
China relies on top grower Canada for more than 70% of its rapeseed meal imports and nearly all of the oilseed imports. Rapeseed is also known as canola […]
