The Canadian government has announced a new $1.5 billion tariff support package aimed at helping companies affected by US tariffs on products containing steel, aluminum and copper. The package includes a new $1 billion Business Development Bank of Canada financing program and an additional $500 million for the Regional Tariff Response Initiative, as Canada seeks to strengthen industrial resilience and support businesses facing tariff-related pressure.
Financing to address immediate pressure and future transformation
The new BDC program will provide financing under favorable terms, helping businesses manage immediate financial pressures caused by US tariffs. The government also stated that the program is designed not only as short-term support, but also as a tool to help companies transform and adapt to future market conditions. Canada expects financial institutions to continue working with affected businesses as part of a broader collective response to support tariff-hit sectors.
The program aligns with the government’s goal of providing rapid liquidity to viable companies facing significant economic challenges linked to US steel, aluminum and copper tariffs.
Additional $500 million for Regional Tariff Response Initiative
In addition to the BDC program, the Canadian government will provide a further $500 million through the Regional Tariff Response Initiative. This funding will be delivered by Canada’s regional development agencies and will support tariff-impacted businesses across all sectors of the economy. The funding aims to help small and medium-sized enterprises access financing for market diversification, productivity improvements, strategic business pivots and competitiveness enhancement.
Canada to continue support for other tariff-hit sectors
The Canadian government also stated that it will continue to support other critical tariff-impacted industries that form key pillars of the national economy, including the softwood lumber and forestry sector. This indicates that Canada’s tariff response is not limited to metals-related industries, but also covers broader strategic sectors exposed to trade pressure.
Canada’s wider response to US tariffs
The newly announced measures add to Canada’s broader response to what the government described as unfair and unjustified tariffs. Existing and planned measures include 25 percent tariffs on US steel product imports worth $12.6 billion and aluminum products worth $3 billion, a $5 billion Strategic Response Fund to help tariff-affected firms in all sectors, including steel and aluminum, adapt, diversify and grow, tariff rate quotas to curb foreign steel imports and a 25 percent tariff on certain steel and aluminum imports from China among other measures.