Smith Rejects Oil Export Cuts Amid Trade Dispute

Alberta Premier Danielle Smith has rejected calls to tax or curtail oil exports as a bargaining chip in the Canada-U.S. trade dispute, arguing it could expose Canada to greater economic damage.

Smith said that taxing or curtailing energy exports would prompt Washington to retaliate against U.S. oil and natural gas exports to Ontario and Quebec, along with gasoline and diesel imported by those provinces from the Midwest.

The Premier also pointed out that restricting Canadian shipments could lead to major job losses, mostly in Alberta but also hundreds of thousands of jobs in Ontario and Quebec.