Tariffs threaten Pittsburgh-Canada trade
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Allegheny County sends more than $1 billion in goods and services to Canada each year, and officials are concerned tariffs will have a massive impact locally if the trade war doesn't relent.
Why it matters: Tariffs on Canada established by President Trump — and retaliatory tariffs on the U.S. — have caused anxiety in Pennsylvania and pushback from politicians like Gov. Josh Shapiro.
Driving the news: Tom Clark, Canadian consul for the American Northeast, met with Allegheny County leadership in Pittsburgh last week to lobby to end the tariffs. He said he worries the continuous trade war will lead to a recession that will hurt Canada and Pittsburgh.
- "We are the biggest customer of Allegheny County by a country mile," Clark told Axios. "If the economy goes south — if there is a recession — we won't be able to buy as much."
Context: Trump and new Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney met last week, seemingly without any resolutions.
- Trump said nothing Carney offered would prompt him to lift tariffs on Canada, Axios' April Rubin reported.
- The U.S. currently imposes a 25% tariff on Canadian products except energy products, which have a 10% tariff. Canada is keeping its 25% tariffs on certain U.S. goods, including steel and aluminum products — one of the biggest Pittsburgh-area exports — and auto imports.
By the numbers: Allegheny County has exported about $1 billion in goods annually to Canada since 2017, according to Trade Partnership Worldwide data.
- Canada purchases about $290 million in communications equipment from Allegheny County companies each year, as well as $166 million in iron and steel products.
- The eight-county Pittsburgh metro area exported $2.8 billion to Canada in 2023, according to the International Trade Administration.
- Mexico is the region's next largest trade partner, with over $1.2 billion in exports in 2023.
Between the lines: Clark says Canada has similar goals economically as Western Pennsylvania and hopes energy exchange between the two can be mutually beneficial if tariffs are lifted.
- The U.S. has sent more gas to Canada than it has brought in annually since 2018, thanks to rapid growth of shale gas production in the Appalachia region surrounding Pittsburgh, according to the Canada Energy Regulator.
State of play: Pennsylvania imports much of its crude oil from Canada, about $1.5 billion last year, according to Trade Partnership Worldwide. It then refines it into vehicle gasoline for places such as Warren, in Northwestern Pennsylvania.
- "Gas is going to be more expensive," Clark said.
What they're saying: Allegheny County Executive Sara Innamorato, a Democrat, told Axios she met with Clark last week. She said Canada is a highly valuable trade partner for Pittsburgh and criticized Trump's tariff rollout.
- "We are deeply concerned about the arbitrary tariff plans announced by the Trump administration and the potential for it to hurt Allegheny County exports," she said.
The other side: Republican Sen. Dave McCormick said last month in Pittsburgh that people should give the tariffs some time before panicking.
- "The tariffs are designed to address a fundamental problem, which is that we've had unfair trading relationships" even with allies like Canada, he told reporters in April.
The bottom line: Clark said retaliatory Canadian tariffs will stop, but only when the U.S. stops its tariffs.
- "The nanosecond the U.S. lifts its tariffs, we stop. We don't want to be here. We want nothing to do with this," he said.