The Canadian and Ontario chambers of commerce have stressed that the recent US Supreme Court decision, which struck down the emergency tariffs imposed by the administration of US President Donald Trump under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act, has not ended the trade war.
Candace Laing, president and chief executive officer of the Canadian Chamber of Commerce, emphasized that the US Supreme Court ruling served neither as “a reset of U.S. trade policy” nor “the last chapter of this never-ending story.”
In a statement, Laing called on Canada to be ready for the US to introduce blunter mechanisms aimed at doubling down on trade pressure, possibly with more far-reaching and disruptive impacts.
“While we walk confidently into the upcoming CUSMA review with the clear value of the deal on the table, companies are moving fast to diversify to hedge against future shocks,” Laing said in the statement.
Laing described the Team Canada Trade Mission to Mexico from Feb. 15–20 as “a further push toward not being caught with all our eggs still all in the same basket.”
Daniel Tisch, president and CEO of the Ontario Chamber of Commerce (OCC), said Canadian businesses operating within the highly integrated North American economy would welcome the US Supreme Court ruling.
“The decision confirms that America remains a country of laws, and that tariffs cannot be imposed capriciously to punish nations or industries that displease the president, or to reward those who find his favour,” Tisch added.
In its media release, the OCC acknowledged the possibility that the US administration would keep the mutually destructive trade war going by implementing tariffs via other channels.
The OCC expressed hope that the US administration would listen to the input of most US businesses, which want fewer barriers to doing business with Ontario and Canada, which the OCC called America’s most important customers and partners.
The OCC urged the Canadian, US, and Mexican governments to recognize the CUSMA’s significant benefits to businesses, workers, and communities in all three nations by reaffirming it as a legally binding, trilateral agreement.
CFIB’s reaction
Dan Kelly, president of the Canadian Federation of Independent Business (CFIB), also welcomed the US Supreme Court ruling as beneficial to small businesses on either side of the Canada–US border.
“But while this decision weakens the administration's justification for tariffs, it is likely that other tariff and trade tools may be used to accomplish the same end,” Kelly said in a statement.
Kelly explained that the US Supreme Court ruling would not end the US administration’s efforts to impose tariffs, remove the uncertainty relating to Canada–US trade, or abolish both countries’ “crippling” steel and aluminum tariffs.
“While uncertainty continues, this is a good day for Canadian businesses,” Kelly said in the statement.
Kelly noted that the decision might help dissuade other US political leaders from this trade approach as the US and Canada review the CUSMA agreement.
Kelly also acknowledged the potential for relief for non-CUSMA-compliant goods, especially as small businesses seek to navigate the complicated regime.
Kelly referred to a recent survey of small businesses, in which 27 percent of respondents reported that non-CUSMA-compliant goods were harmful to them.