Alec Salloum
Regina Leader-Post
The Saskatchewan government is holding the line on its retaliatory measures even as President Donald Trump temporarily walks back some U.S. tariffs.
The easing of any tariffs is welcome news but the ongoing uncertainty posed by rapid changes in policy continue to cause harm to businesses and consumers in both countries, said a statement from Premier Scott Moe’s office on Thursday.
“We are seeking clarification on the details of the pause announced today, specifically which export products are now exempt from tariffs and which will still have tariffs applied,” noted the statement.
“For now, the measures announced yesterday by Premier Moe regarding U.S. alcohol and procurement remain in effect.”
Speaking Friday morning, Saskatchewan Finance Minister Jim Reiter said the tariff spat changes by the hour and minute, making it difficult to plan for much of anything, especially with a fast-approaching provincial budget.
“I hope this isn’t the new norm, but it might be,” said Reiter, who added that he hopes cooler heads prevail. “Nobody’s going to win with this. This is ridiculous. We need to get back to some semblance of normalcy.”
In terms of applying pressure to the U.S. with potash levies, Reiter reiterated that the province does not support placing export taxes on potash for fear of hurting revenues and putting people out of work.
“We want to be very careful on the export side,” he said.
The U.S. amended tariffs on potash imports, knocking the levy down to 10 per cent from 25 per cent.
Widespread U.S. tariffs of 25 per cent on Canadian goods, with a 10-per-cent carveout for Canadian energy imports, came into force on Tuesday. Canada implemented counter-measures simultaneously, including $30 billion in targeted tariffs on U.S. imports and a promise of more.
Late Thursday, the U.S. announced it was pausing tariffs on exports covered under the Canada-United States-Mexico Agreement (CUSMA) until April 2, according to Canada’s Finance Minister, Dominic LeBlanc.
The Associated Press reported that a White House official, who insisted on anonymity, said roughly 62 per cent of imports from Canada would likely still face the new tariffs because they’re not compliant with CUSMA, a free trade deal between Canada, the U.S. and Mexico.
Should the full tariffs or more tariffs from the U.S. be implemented on April 2, LeBlanc said $125 billion in additional retaliatory measures would immediately come into force.
Saskatchewan’s measures remain in effect.
Those measures include: directing Saskatchewan Liquor and Gaming Authority to stop purchasing U.S.-produced alcohol, direction that goods and services procured by the Government of Saskatchewan prioritize Canadian suppliers, future government capital projects have been paused and, for projects in process, contractors are being asked to report on American products and “reduce that amount.” Lotteries and Gaming Saskatchewan has also been directed to source VLT and slot machine upgrades from non-U.S. suppliers.
Additionally, the province has asked that “school divisions, municipalities and post-secondary institutions adopt similar procurement policies that prioritize Canadian goods and services,” according to a news release issued Wednesday.
— with files from the National Post
