China slaps steep tariff on $5B Canadian canola industry
As U.S. tariffs dominate the headlines, China has quietly escalated a trade dispute with Canada by imposing a 75.8 per cent tariff on Canadian canola, effective Thursday.
As U.S. tariffs dominate the headlines, China has quietly escalated a trade dispute with Canada by imposing a 75.8 per cent tariff on Canadian canola, effective Thursday.
This move comes after Canada placed a 100 per cent duty on Chinese-made electric vehicles last year.
The move follows an anti-dumping investigation launched by Beijing in 2024, which the Chinese commerce ministry says began in direct retaliation to Ottawa’s EV tariffs, calling them “discriminatory unilateral restrictive measures.”
China is Canada’s second-largest market for canola, worth nearly $5 billion in exports last year.
China’s Ministry of Commerce said that Canada and China met in Beijing on Friday, “where the two sides had in-depth and frank exchanges on bilateral economic and trade relations and key economic and trade concerns of both sides, and exchanged views on deepening bilateral, regional, and multilateral economic and trade cooperation.”
The new tariffs, however, could effectively shut Canadian canola out of China’s market.
Dr. Sylvain Charlebois, a Canadian agri-food expert, said the development fits a larger pattern.
“China hammering Canada with tariffs. India hammering Canada with tariffs. The U.S. hammering Canada with tariffs,” Charlebois wrote on X. “Don’t know about you, I see a pattern.”
He confirmed Canada exported approximately $4.9 billion in canola products to China, making it Canada’s second-largest market.
While the retaliation was in response to a move by former prime minister Justin Trudeau, the tariffs were announced the same day China’s Ministry of Commerce met with Canada in Beijing.
Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre recently slammed Prime Minister Mark Carney for the rising tariffs from the United States and his “elbows down” retreat.
China has previously restricted Canadian canola imports, notably in 2019, banning shipments from two major exporters during the Huawei Meng Wanzhou affair. The Canola Council of Canada estimated the ban cost exporters $2.35 billion before it was lifted in 2020.While Canada was saddled with the fifth-highest tariff rate in the world by the United States, the U.S. recently extended the tariff deadline for China by three months.
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Its long overdue to throw out all Chinese police, their staff and anything else linked to communist China. The sheer arrogance of China to think they can have operating Chinese police stations in Canada while abusing and politically attacking Canadian citizens is appalling. Its also time to hold the Liberals to account for allowing this to occur on Canadian soil. China is not our friend....
Once again, Ontario's facade to be an EV builder , Ford instructed the #Libtards to tariff China at 100% , to ensure there is no competition !
As always , Western Canada's Canola industry is sacrificed for Central Canada's ego !