President Donald Trump talks to reporters after arriving on Air Force One Tuesday, Aug. 11, 2026, at Joint Base Andrews, Md. Mark Schiefelbein AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein
By David Olive Star Business Columnist
David Olive is a Toronto-based business columnist for the Star.
There is no need for urgency in Canada’s efforts to persuade the U.S. to refrain from imposing its latest planned tariffs on Canadian goods that are to take effect on Aug. 19.
No trade deal is better than a bad one that Canada would be stuck with for many years, long after U.S. President Donald Trump has left office.
A tariff regime is difficult to unwind once it is enacted. Former U.S. president Joe Biden left in place many of the tariffs that Trump imposed in his first presidential term.
Canada’s trade negotiators are preparing concessions to the U.S. in hopes of blunting its latest tariff attack — a 50 per cent duty on hundreds of Canadian goods not already hit by steep U.S. tariffs on steel, aluminum, autos and forest products.
For instance, Ottawa is thought to be willing to accept limits, or quotas, on exports of Canadian steel, aluminum and other goods to the U.S.
But there needs to be an end to such concessions in vain attempts to appease Trump.
Every concession we’ve made has only emboldened Trump to impose new or higher tariffs. Concessions that range from scrapping our digital services tax to accepting an extortionate deal on the Gordie Howe bridge have simply whetted Trump’s appetite for more shakedowns.
As the Wall Street Journal said in an October 2025 editorial, “Trump’s household remedy is always more tariffs to counter the damage from his previous tariffs.”
There are limits to Canada’s vulnerability to U.S. trade policy gone haywire.
Most Canadian economic activity is beyond the reach of U.S. tariffs. That includes financial services, transportation, construction, culture, tourism, and the vast public sector of healthcare, education and public transit.
Trump has been vowing to destroy the U.S.’s trade arrangements with Canada for 10 years since his first term as president. It might at last be time to call his bluff.
In that spirit, Ontario Premier Doug Ford has demanded “dollar-for-dollar” retaliatory tariffs to match the latest threatened U.S. duties. Canada could “dismantle the U.S. if we wanted to,” Ford said.
And Janice Charette, Canada’s top trade negotiator, is reported to have suggested to her U.S. counterpart, Jamieson Greer, that the U.S. imposing its Aug. 19 tariffs would bring Canada-U.S. trade negotiations to a dead halt. Any further talks would be pointless.
Canada can go on the offensive, finally, with export taxes on goods that are vital to the U.S. economy and its national security.
They include oil, natural gas, electricity, aluminum, potash, forest products, uranium and critical minerals. The tax would start at five per cent and rise by five per cent each time the U.S. imposed new tariffs.
Canada is dealing from a position of strength.
With 181,000 new jobs created since May, Canada is outpacing the U.S. in job creation, at a rate of almost one per cent employment growth this year to the U.S.’s 0.2 per cent in the same period.
The Canadian economy is growing faster than its U.S. counterpart, on track to outpace all G7 economies next year. Between April and June, Canadian GDP grew at an annualized rate of 3.4 per cent, besting the U.S. rate of 1.5 per cent in that time.
And Canada has been more successful than the U.S. in suppressing inflation, the issue that most concerns American voters.
Canada’s inflation rate is forecast at a range of 2.2 per cent to 2.6 per cent in the balance of 2026. The forecast U.S. rate is 3.0 per cent to 3.7 per cent in that period.
The stock market value of Canadian corporations has soared by 41 per cent to US$4.5 trillion since the first of Trump’s tariffs went into effect in March 2025. And foreign investment in Canadian stocks and bonds hit a near-record $256 billion in the 12 months ending May 3 — a sign of global confidence in the resilience of Canada’s economy.
Meanwhile, Trump is at the weakest point in his presidency, with abysmal public approval ratings, a broken campaign promise to destroy inflation, a failed war in Iran, and his party’s widely expected loss of Congress in midterm elections in November.
Trump needs a singular success in his otherwise botched foreign policy, as he did ahead of the midterm Congressional elections in 2018. At that time, Trump boasted that the then-new Canada-U.S. Mexico Agreement (CUSMA) was the “largest, fairest, most balanced and modern trade agreement ever achieved.”
Canada could hand Trump a similar victory with a renewed trade agreement bearing close resemblance to CUSMA.
All Trump needs to do is immediately lift all his tariffs on Canadian goods — which are a tax on U.S. consumers — including those on steel, aluminum, autos, hockey sticks, wigs and kitchen cabinets.
Those imports do not pose a threat to U.S. national security, as Trump has often claimed. But the inflationary tariffs applied to them cast doubt on the long-term viability of Trump’s presidency.
Opinion articles are based on the author’s interpretations and judgments of facts, data and events. More details
David Olive is a Toronto-based business columnist for the Star.
Make us a preferred source on Google
Trending
Doug Ford wins major court battle to strip Toronto of its main downtown bike lanes
Why the Tories’ Jamaican spy mission against Bonnie Crombie is a headache for Doug Ford
Ontario to become ‘cash bail’ province starting Monday, critics say it will create a two-tier justice system
Youngest Black professor at Cambridge who faced plagiarism claims is found dead
Trade deal still ‘pretty far off’ as Canadian negotiators stay in Washington
BTS fans are flocking to a Toronto merch pop-up, where hoodies cost $253 and T-shirts $112
Blue Jays vs. Yankees: Kirk flexes muscle, but Guerrero exits early in series-opening win
TMU report on handling of Israel-Palestinian tensions urges school to tackle intimidation, discrimination
More News
Iowa senator says Trump’s new tariffs should be a wake-up call for Canada
“Her daughter never came home”: The hours before the death of Melina Frattolin
Away from the jury’s ears, now-convicted murderer Frattolin said he wanted to testify
While Taliban leaders mark 5 years in power in Afghanistan, a UN official warns of a rights crisis
This $9 noodle and drink combo is an absolute steal — and the best thing I ate in Toronto this week
Childhood summers are precious. Why the Toronto Star’s editor-in-chief is making this one count
More from the Star & partners
More Business
David Olive: Canada needs to stop trying to appease Trump and finally call his bluff on tariffs
Canada doesn’t need more corporate tax cuts. It needs more investment
He was once Toronto’s condo king. Now he’s living in an abandoned knitting mill. What happened?
Neil Seeman: Prediction markets are just casinos with better branding. It’s time to regulate them that way
As flooding events become more frequent, new tech tools can help mitigate the damage caused during and after the deluges
Top Trending
Graeme MacKay: Speaking Canadian
A mysterious cash surge for Alberta’s separatist party is tied to out-of-province donors
Child who prompted Porter Airline flight cancellation not at fault, passenger says
Doug Ford wins major court battle to strip Toronto of its main downtown bike lanes
Tens of thousands sign petition calling for U.S. ambassador’s removal from Canada
JOIN THE CONVERSATION
To join the conversation set a first and last name in your user profile. Update Profile
Conversations are opinions of our readers and are subject to the Community Guidelines. Toronto Star does not endorse these opinions.
Never miss the debate! Receive daily email notifications when users reply to your comments. Sign up for alerts here!
Terms of Use | Privacy Policy | Subscription Terms | Advertising Terms | Accessibility
100% Canadian Owned.
© Copyright Toronto Star Newspapers Limited 1996 - 2026
The Toronto Star and thestar.com, each property of Toronto Star Newspapers Limited, 8 Spadina Avenue, 10th Floor, Toronto, ON M5V 0S8
