Canada Slaps Back with $7.5 Billion Tariff Support Package

Canadian officials recently announced a support package worth $7.5 billion Canadian dollars to help businesses and workers affected by US tariffs.

The funding includes non-repayable loans of up to $3 million for small businesses, interest-free loans of up to $2 million for businesses indirectly affected, and an additional $5 million in loans through Canada's business development bank for directly affected small and medium-sized businesses.

Medium-sized and large firms will be eligible for a further $2 billion, while retraining programs for workers whose industries are impacted by tariffs will receive over half a billion dollars. Temporary employment insurance benefits have also been extended for a year.

This move comes after US-Canada trade negotiations collapsed due to disagreements on tariffs for automobiles, steel, and aluminum. Canada's proposal to lower tariffs on automobiles was deemed unacceptable by the Trump administration, which lobbied against it.