Steel coils are seen at ArcelorMittal Dofasco factory in Hamilton, on March 12.Cole Burston/The Globe and Mail
Canada imposes retaliatory tariffs on $29.8-billion worth of U.S. steel, other goods
U.S. President Donald Trump imposed 25-per-cent tariffs on all steel and aluminum imports on Wednesday – a move that will have an outsized impact on Canada, which is America’s largest foreign supplier of both metals. Ottawa responded by announcing dollar-for-dollar tariffs against $29.8-billion worth of U.S. goods, including steel, aluminum, computers, sports equipment and cast-iron products, Robert Fife and Nathan VanderKlippe report. The European Union also promised countertariffs on US$28.3-billion in U.S. goods, including beef, chicken, bourbon, motorcycles and blue jeans. The new levies, which could come into place in two stages in April, will raise prices and may cost jobs in both Europe and the U.S., European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen warned.
Bank of Canada cuts interest rate by quarter-point to 2.75%
The Bank of Canada cut its policy interest rate by a quarter percentage point to 2.75 per cent on Wednesday, the seventh consecutive rate cut since last summer. Governor Tiff Macklem said the central bank would “proceed carefully” with future monetary policy decisions. He also warned that Canadians should brace for an impending downturn and that U.S. tariffs, depending on their level and duration, could exact a severe toll. “A tariff war will weaken economic activity in Canada, but it will also boost prices and inflation, and what we can’t let happen is we can’t let a tariff problem become an inflation problem,” he said in an interview with Mark Rendell after the rate announcement. Traders trimmed their bets on another rate cut in April after the announcement. Markets are now pricing in only two more cuts this year.
Tiff Macklem, governor of the Bank of Canada, spoke with the Globe and Mail on March 12, after the announcement for the cut to its key interest rate by a quarter-percentage-point.Ashley Fraser/The Globe and Mail
Decoder: Tariffs leave households and bosses bracing for steeper inflation
As the Bank of Canada charts a path for interest rates in a trade war, economists say the country could be heading towards stagflation – a rare economic combination of high inflation and stagnant economic growth. According to the central bank’s latest surveys on consumers and businesses, many are worried about inflation. The annual pace of inflation has generally been on a downward trajectory for more than two years, and measured 1.9 per cent in January, but households fear the barrage of tariffs will push the inflation rate to 4.1 per cent over the next year. Likewise, business leaders surveyed in February expect inflation to climb over the next 12 months to 3.3 per cent. The surveys also point to an economy that is clamping down, with households stockpiling savings and planning fewer major purchases. Jason Kirby takes a closer look at the numbers in this week’s Decoder.
Hudson’s Bay anticipates closing about half its 80 stores in restructuring plan
Canada’s oldest retailer, Hudson’s Bay Co., is facing a financial crisis. The company, which was granted court protection from its creditors last Friday, said it is working on a restructuring plan that could keep roughly 40 of its 80 Hudson’s Bay stores open, Susan Krashinsky Robertson reports. Hudson’s Bay is likely to ask mall owners and other landlords for concessions that could include waiving the rent on stores for a period of time and financial contributions from those landlords to keep locations open. The money-losing company had already fallen months behind on rent and payments to its vendors before it commenced the proceedings under the Companies’ Creditors Arrangement Act (CCAA). Hudson’s Bay Co. has been hobbled by losses and falling retail sales, reporting a $329.7-million net loss in the 12 months that ended Jan. 31, 2025, according to a report filed by the monitor overseeing the CCAA process.
Hudson’s Bay Co. has been hobbled by losses and falling retail sales, reporting a $329.7-million net loss in the 12 months that ended Jan. 31, 2025.Chris Young/The Canadian Press
Young homebuyers seeking to climb the property ladder are stuck with hard-to-sell condos
The U.S. trade war has spooked scores of potential homebuyers out of the market just after many homeowners had pitched “for sale” signs on their front lawns, Erica Alini reports. This is even more apparent in the sluggish condo market. Ideally, the current conditions are a rare chance for daring buyers to make the most of ample choices and more bargaining power. But long-standing woes in the condo market are making it hard for young people who bought units as starter homes in recent years to find buyers or fetch the high prices that would allow them to buy a bigger home.
The CN Tower can be seen behind condos in Toronto's Liberty Village community on April 25, 2017.COLE BURSTON/The Canadian Press
Take our business quiz for the week of March 14
d. 40. The company, founded in 1670, is asking its landlords for financial assistance to help it keep roughly half its 80 stores open.
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