U.S. President-elect Donald Trump's potential tariff hike on imports from Canada will only hurt the economies of both countries and bring a negative impact on producers and consumers in the United States, according to Canadian residents.
Following his presidential election victory in November, Trump announced he would sign an executive order imposing a 25-percent tariff on all products entering the U.S. from Mexico and Canada.
During on-street interviews with the China Global Television Network (CGTN), residents in Canada's largest city Toronto voiced their concerns over Trump's tariff threat, with many believing it will adversely affect both the Canadian and American people if the president carries out his proposed plan.
"It's not really a great policy for anyone, I don't think. It's going to have a negative impact on both our economies because we'll be selling less and they'll be buying less," said a local man.
"I think that will impact the Canadian business a lot, and there is certainly an impact on different businesses. It might shut down a few businesses which has a detrimental impact on the overall society and the entire Canada," said another.
"It's very interesting [if] he actually implemented such a policy because Canada is one of America's biggest trade partners. And [overall], this policy will not really harm the Canadian producers and farmers, but rather they will probably harm the American people because they will be the guys paying the price of this tariff," added another local.
Many residents pointed out that while the tariffs will hurt the competitiveness of Canadian businesses and products, the move may also encourage the country to look at other trade partners.
"It's going to be negative for us. It would be better if they didn't impose it because obviously it's easier to do business without any kind of barriers like that. But, I think ultimately it's going to end up hurting them more than us. And it might give us some opportunity to diversify and look at other trade partners who are not quite as beholden to the United States," said a local.
"First of all, it obviously will make Canada's produce less competitive on an international scale. But also consider that these tariffs, I think it's also imposed on Mexico, this will just make all the products going into America indifferent. So, in the end, it will still, again, be the American people paying this price, not anyone else," another added.
Many also expressed fears over how the potential tariffs increase might affect their daily lives as consumers.
"It's just going to cost more. Money is not going to go as far. Things are just going to be a little bit harder for everyone," said a local.
"So as a consumer, if your business is getting impacted within the country, it has an overall economic impact. And that will trickle down to the normal consumer who has to pay more of a price to buy products," said another.
As Trump has also threatened to initiate a trade war with Mexico and the European Union, many Canadians worry that such a large-scale conflict will result in increased costs for countries exporting to the U.S., ultimately impacting the global economy.
"Everyone is going to feel this a little bit. The U.S. is one of the biggest economies in the world, and if it's buying less, everyone's selling less," said one of the Toronto residents interviewed.
"At the end of the day, the global economy will persist and it will sustain. But the United States is the biggest superpower in the world and we do need to take stake of what they're doing," said another.
One resident also warned there is still a huge sense of uncertainty before Trump is officially inaugurated on Jan. 20. "It's still too early to say how it will impact the global economies. (Trump still) has to take office. Once he takes office, people will understand [if] he might impose tariff on other countries too. So those countries will also be impacted in a way, if they have to pay more to export to the U.S.," he said.
Canadians concerned Trump's potential tariff hike against Canada will hurt both economies
