Trump's tariffs didn't hit B.C. as hard as feared — but add to air of uncertainty

Akshay Kulkarni · CBC News

· Posted: Apr 02, 2025 11:31 PM EDT | Last Updated: 10 minutes ago

B.C. escaped the brunt of the tariff broadside announced by U.S. President Donald Trump connected Wednesday, but businesses accidental the ongoing uncertainty of the U.S.-Canada commercialized warfare is taking its toll.

On Wednesday, Trump enactment into bid a wide swath of tariffs from the White House Rose Garden that targeted dozens of countries, and included caller 25 per cent tariffs on Canadian-made rider vehicles.

The levies adhd to existing tariffs connected Canadian alloy and aluminum, arsenic good arsenic tariffs connected Canadian goods that bash not comply with the United States–Mexico–Canada Agreement (USMCA).

B.C. businesses and analysts accidental Wednesday's announcement could person been overmuch worse for the province, but that the on-again, off-again tariffs and Canada's counter-tariffs are creating an aerial of uncertainty for section businesses, regardless.

"I really came distant from the Rose Garden property league a small spot relieved, to beryllium candid," said Jock Finlayson, the main economist for the Independent Contractors and Business Association successful B.C. "Because I was expecting worse from sort of a Canadian and B.C. perspective, but we didn't spot that today."

All the same, Finlayson said, "we're inactive facing headwinds."

LISTEN | Finlayson reacts to Trump's Wednesday announcement:

Abbotsford among astir affected

Abbotsford is the B.C. metropolitan country that's acceptable to beryllium astir affected by U.S. tariffs, according to a caller Canadian Chamber of Commerce report.

Alex Mitchell, the CEO of the Abbotsford Chamber of Commerce, said that's owed to the community's precocious reliance connected exporting products to the U.S.

"Abbotsford is location to implicit 300 exporters and galore of those are manufacturers, cultivation businesses, who for 90 per cent of them, their superior lawsuit is the United States," she said.

WATCH | Abbotsford to beryllium deed hard by commercialized war:

Mitchell said that, for a agelong time, it had been casual to trust connected the U.S. arsenic a qualified and coagulated commercialized partner.

"But of course, present we spot the erosion of that relationship that's happened truthful rapidly wrong a substance of time," she said. "And we're present astatine the spot wherever galore of these companies request to beryllium looking elsewhere for opportunity."

BRC Aircraft, a level shaper successful Abbotsford, does 80 per cent of its concern with the U.S. Its CEO, Zrinko Amerl, said the company is heavy reliant connected U.S. parts, and if tariffs were to straight interaction the B.C. aerospace industry, it would beryllium devastating.

"It volition decimate us, we volition astir apt suffer 50 per cent or 60 per cent of concern close away," helium said.

Marcus Janzen, the president of Abbotsford-based Calais Farms, said helium aims to person his greenhouse-grown peppers implicit the U.S. borderline wrong 24 hours of them ripening — but he's facing a 25 to 30 per cent uptick successful packaging prices, arsenic helium buys cardboard packaging from the U.S.

The husbandman said helium doesn't blasted the manufacturers for lifting the prices, fixed however uncertain the proviso and outgo is amid the cross-border commercialized war.

"It's this, you know, connected for 3 days, off, postponed, not definite what we'll bash next," helium said of the volatile tariff situation. "That's what's hard to manage."

Amerl, similar galore B.C. concern owners, said he's present trying to prosecute much with markets different than the U.S., specified arsenic South America.

The CEO said that, eventually, the planetary commercialized warfare initiated by Trump will payment the Canadian aerospace industry, arsenic different countries look to determination accumulation extracurricular the U.S.

"There is simply a airy astatine the extremity of the tunnel, and hopefully it's not a bid coming astatine us," helium said.