{"id":42526,"date":"2026-05-12T21:18:07","date_gmt":"2026-05-12T21:18:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/canada\/42526\/"},"modified":"2026-05-12T21:18:07","modified_gmt":"2026-05-12T21:18:07","slug":"canadas-automaking-future-depends-on-end-of-tariffs-head-of-industry-group-says","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/canada\/42526\/","title":{"rendered":"Canada\u2019s automaking future depends on end of tariffs, head of industry group says"},"content":{"rendered":"

The future of Canada\u2019s auto industry<\/a> depends on the removal of U.S. tariffs<\/a> and the renewal of the continental free trade agreement, the representative of the Detroit Three carmakers in Canada says.<\/p>\n

The Canadian auto sector, integrated with those of the United States and Mexico for decades, does not have the option of diversifying into new markets in a meaningful way, and needs tariff-free access to the U.S. to survive, said Brian Kingston, head of the Canadian Vehicle Manufacturers\u2019 Association, which represents Ford Motor Co. F-N<\/a>, General Motors Co. GM-N<\/a> and Stellantis NV STLA-N<\/a>. <\/p>\n

\u201cBottom line is this: no U.S. access, no auto industry. Simple as that,\u201d Mr. Kingston said at an industry event in Toronto on Tuesday. <\/p>\n

U.S. President Donald Trump imposed 25-per-cent tariffs on the non-U.S. content of Canadian-made cars more than a year ago, in apparent violation of the free-trade agreement and causing a decline in production and auto jobs in Ontario. As negotiators prepare for the July review of the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement, the car industries in Canada and the U.S. are pushing to restore tariff-free shipments and the removal of the Trump tariffs. <\/p>\n

Mr. Kingston said the costs of tariffs are reducing sales of domestically-made cars on both sides of the border. Americans bought 132,000 fewer Canadian-made cars last year while Canadians bought 62,000 fewer U.S.-made vehicles, he said. <\/p>\n

Trump\u2019s trade war hurts the U.S. too, Canadian ambassador says<\/a><\/p>\n

Production at Canadian auto plants has declined to 1.2 million in 2025 from 2.3 million in 2016. The tariffs have also spurred the loss of jobs and shift of production to the U.S.<\/p>\n

Meanwhile, Chinese auto production is up by 10 per cent and auto exports have risen by 21 per cent. \u201cSo as America fights with its strongest partners and allies, our competitors around the world are increasing their production and capabilities by leaps and bounds,\u201d he said. <\/p>\n

Speaking at the same event, Swamy Kotagiri, chief executive officer of auto parts company Magna International Inc. MG-T<\/a>, said Canada\u2019s auto industry must make products and create value that cannot be made elsewhere.<\/p>\n

Mr. Kotagiri said policy makers and companies should focus on advanced manufacturing methods and automation that will keep Canadian factories \u201cessential\u201d to the sector. <\/p>\n

Tariffs on Canadian, Mexican cars cost U.S. automakers $12.5-billion last year<\/a><\/p>\n

This, he said, should come before attempts at preserving \u201clegacy employment,\u201d and the regional stability an auto plant creates with government subsidies for automakers. Auto employment and production have declined despite sustained taxpayer subsidies for the industry, he said.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe implication is simple,\u201d Mr. Kotagiri said. \u201cCapital should flow towards capabilities, not specific factories.\u201d<\/p>\n

Recent events in Ontario underline Mr. Kotagiri\u2019s message.<\/p>\n

There have been large layoffs, prolonged retooling and one shutdown at automotive plants that have been the target of millions of dollars in taxpayer assistance. This includes Stellantis\u2019s idled Brampton plant, and GM\u2019s closed BrightDrop electric van factory in Ingersoll. <\/p>\n

The Globe and Mail reported last week the federal government has granted $464-million to Ford for its Oakville truck plant<\/a>. That plant\u2019s retooling was shifted to gasoline- and diesel-powered pickups from electric cars as the growth in EVs slowed in the U.S. and Canada after consumer incentives were dropped and government policies changed. The decline of EVs has called into question government support for the sector, even as emissions-free vehicles gain in popularity in other parts of the world. <\/p>\n

Opinion: Enough is enough. Canada must fight tariffs with tariffs<\/a><\/p>\n

Tariffs, the EV shift and the rise of China are three of a handful of forces upending the auto industry, said Jordan Brennan, a managing director at Royal Bank of Canada\u2019s Thought Leadership division. <\/p>\n

\u201cCanada\u2019s auto industry is at the centre of the storm,\u201d said Mr. Brennan, the author of a new report<\/a> that lays out four possible paths for domestic car industry. <\/p>\n

In the most optimistic of Mr. Brennan\u2019s scenarios, free trade is restored, Chinese EVs are excluded and Ontario\u2019s tech sector thrives along with the electrification of the auto industry. <\/p>\n

In the gloomiest outcome, USMCA as it pertains to cars is scrapped or weakened, Chinese EVs flood the market and, Mr. Brennan writes, \u201cby 2040, all auto assembly plants in Canada have shuttered.\u201d <\/p>\n

Most likely, Canada\u2019s car industry faces a future marked by a mix of the above \u2013 some good, some devastating, he said. \u201cWhat\u2019s critical is that public policy remains flexible and adaptive to any possible future.\u201d <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The future of Canada\u2019s auto industry depends on the removal of U.S. tariffs and the renewal of the…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":42527,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[164,224,238,214,212,239,17,211,230,231,227,213,210,235,171,234,143,222,249,215,216,229,225,226,219,240,220,244,245,247,242,246,94,243,217,142,233,113,232,241,223,236,237,228,221,218,248],"class_list":{"0":"post-42526","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-canada","8":"tag-alberta","9":"tag-arts-news","10":"tag-bc","11":"tag-breaking-news","12":"tag-breaking-news-video","13":"tag-british-columbia","14":"tag-canada","15":"tag-canada-news","16":"tag-canada-sports","17":"tag-canada-sports-news","18":"tag-canada-trafficcanada-weather","19":"tag-canadian-breaking-news","20":"tag-canadian-news","21":"tag-economy","22":"tag-education","23":"tag-environment","24":"tag-federal-government","25":"tag-foreign-news","26":"tag-globe-and-mail","27":"tag-globe-and-mail-breaking-news","28":"tag-globe-and-mail-canada-news","29":"tag-government","30":"tag-life-news","31":"tag-lifestyle","32":"tag-local-news","33":"tag-manitoba","34":"tag-national-news","35":"tag-new-brunswick","36":"tag-newfoundland-and-labrador","37":"tag-northwest-territories","38":"tag-nova-scotia","39":"tag-nunavut","40":"tag-ontario","41":"tag-pei","42":"tag-photos","43":"tag-political-news","44":"tag-political-opinion","45":"tag-politics","46":"tag-politics-news","47":"tag-quebec","48":"tag-sports-news","49":"tag-technology","50":"tag-travel","51":"tag-trudeau","52":"tag-us-news","53":"tag-world-news","54":"tag-yukon"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/canada\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/42526","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/canada\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/canada\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/canada\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/canada\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=42526"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/canada\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/42526\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/canada\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/42527"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/canada\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=42526"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/canada\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=42526"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/canada\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=42526"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}