OTTAWA — Prime Minister Mark Carney said Canada will take “some time” to craft a response to increased U.S. tariffs on steel and aluminum after U.S. President Donald Trump doubled the damaging duties on Wednesday.

Trump signed an executive order Tuesday to increase the levies on steel and aluminum to 50 per cent, claiming it was necessary to protect national security and industries in the United States.

On his way into the weekly Liberal caucus meeting in Ottawa Wednesday, Carney said Canada is in “intensive” discussions with the U.S. on trade. The prime minister said the tariffs are “unlawful and unjustified” and predicted they will harm American industry and workers.

Carney also noted that Canada currently has retaliatory tariffs in place on $90 billion worth of U.S. goods.

“We will take some time — not much, some time — because we are in intensive discussions right now with the Americans on our trading relationship,” Carney said when asked about his government’s response to the increased tariffs.

“Those discussions are progressing. I would note that the American action is global action. It’s not one targeted at Canada. So we’ll take some time, but not more.”

Ontario Premier Doug Ford said he told Carney that Ottawa should add another 25 per cent to Canada’s retaliatory tariffs on steel to equal Trump’s levies.

“Canada is not the problem,” Ford said on CNN Wednesday. “Again, we purchase $30 billion … of steel off the U.S., and that’s going to come to an end real quick.”

Canada is a major supplier of steel and aluminum to the United States and economists have warned the tariffs could lead to cost increases for Americans. Both metals are used in a wide range of industries, from construction and the auto sector to the manufacture of products like soup cans and paper clips.

Some in American industry applauded Trump’s tariffs while others said predictable trade plans are necessary for investment.

David McCall, the international president of the United Steelworkers union, said in a statement that work must be done “in collaboration with trusted allies” like Canada — the top exporter of steel and aluminum to the U.S. — to help “contain the bad actors.”

The Canadian steel and aluminum industries say the doubled tariffs will have a devastating impact. Liberal MPs from steel towns in Ontario were visibly shaken when they entered caucus Wednesday.

MP Lisa Hepfner of Hamilton, a major steel hub, did not mince words when asked about the impact of 50 per cent tariffs.

“Thousands of jobs lost,” she said. “The end of the industry.”

She called for increased retaliation and said “it has to be quick.”

MP Terry Sheehan represents Sault Ste. Marie, where Algoma Steel is located. He said the industry was already struggling under 25 per cent tariffs.

“If industry goes down in northern Ontario, you don’t just lose your job, which is a terrible thing. You lose the equity in your home when those industries shutter,” Sheehan said.

Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre posted on social media that Trump’s move to double tariffs was “wrong and unjustified.” He said Canada needs “to take a strong stance in response to these tariffs that gets a deal as soon as possible, protects our sovereignty & jobs.”

Conservative deputy leader Melissa Lantsman called for an emergency debate on the duties. In a post on social media, she said “Canada’s steel and aluminum workers need a plan now.”

—With files from Kyle Duggan in Ottawa, Kelly Geraldine Malone in Washington and The Associated Press

This report by The Canadian Press was first published June 4, 2025.

David Baxter, The Canadian Press