The ongoing Canada-U.S. trade war is a rollercoaster ride that is less of an exciting thrill and more of a nausea-inducing headache for Canadians of all stripes. “It’s horrible for all of us. The poor get poorer, the rich get richer,” said Christine, who was shopping at an Ottawa Walmart Tuesday afternoon. “It’s so unfair but I’m not surprised.” New Canadian counter-tariffs on American goods went into effect early Tuesday morning, impacting roughly 700 products. Dairy, plywood, sunscreen, and hair products are just some of the goods now subject to as much as a 50 per cent levy. The latest trade measure is a bitter pill to swallow for Capital Beauty Supply, which imports products from around the world for hundreds of hair salons across eastern Ontario. “People are fed up with the situation. As we are,” said Will Moizer who owns the business with his wife. “There’s a lot of animosity that has built up, especially here, so I don’t think many at all are going to pay a premium.” Trade experts say price hikes could be significant, but they won’t hit Canadian wallets immediately. “The company distributing or selling the American shampoo, as an example, will have stock on hand. They will have inventory that will have been imported into the country before the counter-tariffs took effect,” said Sylvain Golsse, EY Canada’s National Trade Leader. “If those price increases occur, it’s going to take some time.” That’s the approach Capital Beauty Supply took, spending big to stock up on American-made products. “Now we hold tight. And, as well, we still promote, as we always do, Canadian products when we can,” said Moizer. “It’s not only the tariffs. There’s a lot of fluctuation with currency rates and that gets difficult to manage. Customers want the same price no matter what.” How long this latest round of reciprocal tariffs remains in place is difficult to predict, but Golsse says he’s not optimistic it will be short-term. “I don’t have a crystal ball, but all signals are that we are still in what I might call an escalation phase when it comes to the trade talks or lack thereof,” he said. “That’s concerning because, really, we can’t hope for a positive outcome until, at a minimum, talks resume and, even then, what we need are productive, good faith negotiations so that we can all get to a practical, sustainable outcome that benefits Canadians but also Americans.” In the meantime, shoppers in Ottawa are voicing their thoughts on the counter-tariffs and bracing for higher costs. “It’s going to affect me, but what can I do? I’m going to support local,” said Susan Marcil. “We can’t back down to the bully. So, we just got to stick it out and fight it out and hopefully we can come to an agreement down the road,” said Bernie O’Brien. It’s a sentiment echoed by Moizer. “We just hope they can work this out and get back to business as usual, or close to usual,” he said.
