Lethbridge businesses and consumers could face rising costs as the Canada-U.S. trade dispute puts pressure on cross-border supply chains, a University of Lethbridge political science professor said.
Yale Belanger said Lethbridge’s proximity to the U.S. border and dependence on regional trade could leave local businesses vulnerable if the dispute persists.
“Being roughly an hour and change away, we’ve got a lot of materials flowing back and forth that, inevitably, may stop flowing to Lethbridge,” Belanger said.
“Ultimately, supply chains are going to be impacted, and we’ll experience the impact of that here in Lethbridge.”
The United States imposed 50 per cent tariffs on $27.6 billion worth of Canadian goods effective Aug. 22, according to the federal government. Canada announced it would match those tariffs dollar for dollar on U.S. goods, with the counter-tariffs taking effect Sept. 8.
Belanger said consumers may not notice the effects immediately, but the impact could become clearer as the dispute continues.
“The tariffs, ultimately, they have an incredible impact, even though it’s incremental at the individual level,” he said.
Businesses that import U.S. goods could face higher costs once Canada’s counter-tariffs take effect, and some could pass those increases on to consumers, he said.
“We will see prices go up immediately, provided President Trump maintains his posture,” Belanger said.
The uncertainty could also prompt consumers and businesses to choose more Canadian-made products, Belanger said.
“Ultimately, we will be faced with the decision, do we buy American products? Do we maintain a Canadian first approach? How are we going to manage this over the long term?”
Tensions intensified after Canada and the United States failed to reach a new trade agreement. Prime Minister Mark Carney suspended the talks Aug. 21, saying last-minute changes to U.S. proposals were unfair and uneconomic. The new U.S. tariffs took effect Aug. 22, while Ottawa announced its retaliatory measures.
Belanger said he supports Carney’s decision to walk away from the negotiations.
“I believe it was right to step back from negotiations and ultimately I think we’re just going to have to play the waiting game and see how things unfold,” he said.
Belanger said he expects conditions to worsen before they improve.
