Trump threatens up to 100% tariffs on Canada’s auto sector

U.S. President Donald Trump is threatening as much as a 100-per-cent tariff on Canada’s auto sector, in addition to the threatened 25-per-cent tariffs now on hold.

“If you look at Canada, Canada has a very big car industry. They stole it from us. They stole it because our people were asleep at the wheel,” said Trump during an interview with Fox News Monday.

“If we don’t make a deal with Canada, we’re going to put a big tariff on cars. Could be a 50 or 100 per cent because we don’t want their cars. We want to make the cars in Detroit.”

The two countries have shared an integrated auto sector for decades, with some auto parts crossing the border multiple times during their assembly.

“The North American auto industry has been founded on integration. That’s what makes Canada and North America competitive as an auto manufacturing jurisdiction,” said Brian Kingston, president and CEO of the Canadian Vehicle Manufacturers Association in a post to X.

Former Prime Minister Lester Pearson signed a deal with then-U.S. President Lyndon Johnson called the Canada-United States Automotive Products Agreement in 1965.

Commonly referred to as the Auto Pact, the deal allowed for the free flow of parts and vehicles between the two countries without tariffs.

The Auto Pact stayed in effect until it was replaced by the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) in 1994, which broadened the arrangement beyond the auto industry to all sectors.

NAFTA would later be replaced by the Canada-United States-Mexico Agreement (CUSMA) in 2018, agreed to by Trump. It is slated for re-negotiation in 2026.

The Trudeau government has said it will continue to work with the Trump administration to relay its message of how cross-border tariffs will ultimately hurt both countries.

However, their attempt to reason with the U.S. president may fall on deaf ears.