Ottawa moves to guard businesses against hostile takeovers during trade war

Canada's industry minister is looking to block what he calls "predatory investment behaviour" as the trade war with the United States continues.

François-Philippe Champagne warned Wednesday that Canadian businesses could be at risk due to the sweeping tariffs imposed by U.S. President Donald Trump.

"As a result of the rapidly shifting trade environment, some Canadian businesses could see their valuations decline, making them susceptible to opportunistic or predatory investment behaviour by non-Canadians," he said in a statement posted to the social media platform X.

He said if critically important firms are compromised, it could jeopardize Canada's economic security.

Champagne said he is updating the Investment Canada Act (ICA) so that the federal government must consider economic security as a factor when deciding whether a deal can go ahead.

The ICA is Ottawa's tool to weigh whether a proposed investment by a foreign actor will benefit Canada's economy.

The act already requires the federal government to consider the national security impacts of proposed investments. Champagne said Wednesday that economic security amounts to national security.

He said the update will allow Canada to reject foreign investments that could harm the Canadian economy or workers.

Champagne said the ICA changes look to strike a balance between encouraging foreign investment and safeguarding the country's national interests.

The move comes one day after the U.S. imposed 25 per cent tariffs on most Canadian goods, with a 10 per cent levy on energy exports, prompting a wave of retaliatory tariffs from Canada.

U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick said in an interview on Bloomberg TV Wednesday morning that he expects Trump will make an announcement regarding the tariffs on Canada and Mexico this afternoon.