Ottawa to Limit Steel Imports to Support Domestic Production in Face of US Tariffs

Prime Minister Mark Carney attends the closing news conference at the G7 summit in Kananaskis, Alta., on June 17, 2025. The Canadian Press/Adrian Wyld

Prime Minister Mark Carney has announced several measures which he says are meant to strengthen Canada’s steel and aluminum industries in response to the United States’ tariffs on the sectors, among them requiring Canadian steel and aluminum for federal procurement, and limiting steel imports from non-free trade agreement countries.

Starting June 30, federal procurement of steel and aluminum will be limited to suppliers from Canada and “from our reliable trading partners that provide reciprocal access to suppliers from Canada through trade agreements,” according to a government statement issued on June 19.

Canada has free trade agreements with 51 countries, including the United States, which has also expressed discontent over foreign producers dumping cheap metal into the U.S. market.

Carney said during a press conference on June 19 that despite Canada and the United States seeking a trade deal in the coming 30 days, “In parallel, we must reinforce our strength at home and safeguard Canadian workers and businesses from the unjust U.S. tariffs that exist at present.”

The United States imposed 25 percent tariffs on steel and aluminum imports in March, which led Ottawa to launch retaliatory tariffs targeting $30 billion in U.S. goods. In early June, the United States doubled the global tariffs to 50 percent, and Carney told reporters that Canada would “take some time” to determine how it would respond.

Carney and U.S. President Donald Trump agreed at the recent G7 summit to try to reach a trade deal within 30 days.

The prime minister said that effective July 21, Canada will adjust its existing counter-tariffs on U.S. steel and aluminum products “to levels consistent with the progress that’s made at that point on the broader trading arrangements” with the United States. He added that Canada will “review our response as the negotiations progress.”

Ottawa will also establish new tariff rate quotas of 100 percent of 2024 levels on steel products from countries where Canada does not have a free trade agreement. The government said the measure will stabilize Canada’s domestic market and “prevent harmful trade diversion” resulting from the U.S. actions. The quotas will be applied retroactively and reviewed in 30 days.

The government will also create two separate government stakeholder task forces, for steel and aluminum, to monitor trade and market trends.

Asked by a reporter whether the United States had asked Ottawa to impose anti-dumping tariffs, Carney said the new tariff rate quotas on non-free trade agreement countries were not a request from the the United States, but were a “consequence of the U.S. actions” on trade. The prime minister said as a result of U.S. tariffs, steel from other countries could “start to come into Canada if we don’t protect our industry.”

The steel and aluminum sectors in Canada employ a total of 150,000 workers, with steel production centred in Hamilton, Ont., and Quebec the leading aluminum producer.