New Brunswickers can expect to feel the pain from tariffs, business leaders say
The White House on Friday said U.S. President Donald Trump's deadline on tariffs still stands as Feb. 1
When it comes to the impact New Brunswickers may feel from U.S. President Donald Trump's promised 25 per cent tariff on Canadian exports, Ron Marcolin, Canadian Manufacturers and Exporters' divisional vice president for New Brunswick, said prepare for the worst.
"I think it is going to definitely hurt," said Marcolin.
"Consumers in this province have to realize that they may have sticker shock and ... feel some short term pain."
Marcolin said while some industries, such as oil and gas, forestry and agriculture, will be particularly impacted, no industry is immune.
While tariffs were an issue during the last Trump presidency, specifically on steel and aluminum, their target nature meant some industries were spared the worst.
That won't be the case this time around.
"We'll feel the pain — we'll feel it immediately," said Marcolin
Marcolin said while manufacturers can adjust somewhat and sell more goods domestically, in many cases that's not possible.
He said a lot of the manufactured goods in New Brunswick are bespoke to the needs of a particular company, often an American one, so they can't just be sent to other markets.
Many companies have also linked themselves heavily with the U.S. market because of its geographic closeness and appetite for Canadian goods, but manufacturers are exploring other markets.
"This type of threat of tariff, though, allows the business owner in New Brunswick to say, 'OK, let's at least look at other markets and other options," he said.
Marcolin said manufacturers are looking more closely at markets in Mexico, Europe and Asia.
And it's not just manufacturers that will have to deal with tariffs, exporters will also be affected.
Craig Estabrooks, CEO of Port Saint John, said they're working with the province to understand the effect of potential tariffs and what can be done to mitigate the damage.
When it comes to the port, the biggest loser may be the oil businesses.
"The liquid bulk business that is owned and operated by Irving Oil would be a very large exporter to the United States. So that's something we think about a lot," said Estabrooks.
However, it appears the port's growing container business may avoid the brunt of tariffs.
"Our container services today do not export to the United States," said Estabrooks.
"The five container services we have today are north-south to the Caribbean and Latin America and then a lot of trade to Northern Europe and the Mediterranean."
While Canadians will no doubt suffer from any tariffs, so will U.S. consumers, Michelle Robichaud, president of the Atlantica Centre for Energy, said.
Robichaud said a lot of products used in the New England region are produced or finished in the Maritimes, and any increase in price will impact our neighbours to the south.
One place New Englanders are likely to feel the pinch in their pockets is when they gas up.
"Eight out of 10 cars in the northeast U.S. are fuelled by the refined petroleum products that come from Saint John," said Robichaud.
"Ninety per cent of the jet fuel that goes into some extremely busy airports — Boston, Portland — that jet fuel comes from New Brunswick."
Robichaud said businesses would likely have tried to move as much product into the U.S. as possible before any tariff goes into effect.
"They have been doing that since Trump was elected, stockpiling as they can," said Robichaud.
"They are preparing for reduced orders out of the U.S. They are preparing for an increase in price."
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With files from Rachel Cave, Information Morning Fredericton and Saint John