U.S. President Donald Trump has announced his intention to launch a national security investigation into auto-part imports — a move that is considered by Unifor, a Canadian union group, to be “rash and ill-considered.”
The investigation could result in new U.S. tariffs, something that is reminiscent of the steel and aluminum situation, and which would impact parts suppliers and OEMs before the burden trickles down to consumers. Higher costs could then affect consumer auto retail purchasing decisions, which in turn will impact Canadian dealerships.
“There are serious issues, including tariffs, which need to be addressed to rebalance North American auto trade in the international market but the shotgun approach of Section 232 could cause chaos in the sector and inflict severe collateral damage to both Canadian and American auto workers,” said Unifor National President Jerry Dias .
He says it’s clear that Canada is not a threat to American security, and wonders if the motivation for the tariff investigation under Section 232 is a type of North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) bargaining tactic, or whether it is a way for Trump to gain some sort of win prior to U.S. midterm elections, particularly since a NAFTA deal has yet to be completed.
Unifor also suggests that news of the investigation was delivered in a recent “surprise announcement” by the U.S. Commerce Department, which is said to have caught both international governments and auto manufacturers off guard.
While Canada’s largest union (in the private sector) plans to “vigorously oppose any attack on Canadian jobs and workers,” other government representatives in the world, such as Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, are also pushing back against the investigation to protect their respective automakers and retailers in the country.
