Southern Alberta braces for Canada-U.S. trade war

With Trump's tariffs now official, business owners and consumers in southern Alberta are bracing themselves.

After months of threats and delays, it has now become more expensive to ship goods across the border.

Canada and Mexico were both hit with a 25 per cent tariff by the United States.

Canadian energy faces a 10 per cent tariff.

“They can’t come in and steal our money and steal our jobs and take our factories and take our businesses and expect not to be punished. And they’re being punished by tariffs,” said U.S. President Donald Trump.

Canada has hit back with tariffs on $30 billion worth of American goods.

That figure will rise to $135 billion in three weeks.

Alberta Premier Danielle Smith, who has been critical of Trudeau, says she supports the federal government’s response.

“The fact that you’re seeing all of the premiers standing behind this prime minister—that’s quite a feat. We all come from different political perspectives. I’ve had my own differences with this prime minister, but these tariffs are unjustified, and we have to have a proportionate response,” said Smith in an interview with CNBC.

While the government works on its response, local businesses are preparing to face a trade war.

Lethbridge stands to be one of the communities hit hardest by tariffs.

“The Canadian Chamber of Commerce came up with a report a few weeks ago and identified Lethbridge actually as the 10th most vulnerable city in Canada because so much of our economy is dependent on exports and so many of our exports go to the United States,” said Economic Development Lethbridge CEO Trevor Lewington.

Tariffs on agricultural products won’t go into effect until April 2.

It’s a temporary relief for producers who know a prolonged trade war would hurt farmers on both sides of the border.

“You want to start playing with big guns or under contract with tariffs? Basically, in some senses, if we just cut off some of their products and not send them down to the States, it would really have a dramatic effect on their agriculture,” said Alberta Federation of Agriculture president Lynn Jacobson.

Local business leaders are hoping for a swift end to the tariffs.

But in the meantime, they’re calling on consumers to do their part by shopping local and buying Canadian.

“Now we know what we have to work with. … We know it’s here. So now the action plan is, ‘What are we going to do from this moment forward?’” said Lethbridge Chamber of Commerce CEO Cyndi Crane.