A 30-day pause on U.S. tariffs is good news for key industries in P.E.I. for now, but the temporary truce hasn’t eased the anxiety of industry leaders on the Island, who say there’s still much uncertainty ahead.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said Monday afternoon that U.S. President Donald Trump will hold off levying 25 per cent tariffs on Canadian goods for at least 30 days after Ottawa made a series of commitments to improve security along the border.
P.E.I. Premier Dennis King said in a statement Tuesday that the pause creates space for further discussions to find a resolution that protects jobs, businesses and industries on the Island and across Canada. The province has temporarily halted its plan to remove U.S. products from provincial liquor store shelves.
Bob Creed, executive director of the P.E.I. Seafood Processors Association, said industry leaders were relieved to hear about the pause.
“We were pleased to hear at the last minute that there was an agreement reached to continue the discussions before the implementation of any tariff model,” said Creed told CBC’s Island Morning.
‘So much uncertainly’
The P.E.I. Potato Board also welcomes the reprieve but says confidence in the trading relationship for the future needs to be restored.
Greg Donald, the board’s general manager, said more than half of P.E.I.’s annual 2.5 billion pounds of potatoes — both bagged and processed — are exported to the U.S. The industry has an economic impact of $1.35 billion and directly or indirectly employs over 8 per cent of the Island workforce.
