OTTAWA - The federal government is launching a new $1 billion loan program for steel, aluminum and copper businesses impacted by U.S. President Donald Trump’s tariffs.
Industry Minister Mélanie Joly and minister responsible for the Federal Economic Development Agency for Southern Ontario Evan Solomon made the announcement in Vars, Ont. on Monday morning.
“The new measures announced today will protect workers and ensure companies have the tools and financing they need to keep operating, growing, and building Canada’s strength at home,” Joly said in a statement.
The program will be created under the Business Development Bank of Canada. The funding was not part of last week’s spring economic update.
According to a press release, the program will provide “financing at favourable terms” to help businesses “address immediate pressures” and “adapt to future market conditions.”
The government also says it’s “working with urgency” in response to the Trump administration’s adjustment to Section 232 tariffs, which imposed 50 per cent duties on items made entirely or almost made entirely of steel, aluminum and copper, and 25 per cent levies on derivative items. Those tariffs came into effect on April 6.
The government also announced an additional $500 million to the already-existing Regional Tariff Response Initiative to help small and medium enterprises impacted by tariffs.
Canada has already imposed a 25 per cent tariff on a list of U.S. steel product imports worth $12.6 billion and aluminum products worth $3 billion in response to Trump’s tariffs. The federal government has also imposed a 25 per cent surtax on specific Chinese steel and aluminum products and quota restrictions to combat unfair trade practices and overcapacity as a way to help those industries.
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