B.C. Premier David Eby and Washington State Senator Patty Murray will speak at a joint event today to address the rising impact of U.S. tariffs on cross-border trade. They’ll be joined by small business owners from Washington to discuss how the latest tariffs from President Donald Trump are straining businesses and communities on both sides of the Canada-U.S. border.
The event comes ahead of Trump’s planned 35 percent tariff on all Canadian imports, set to take effect August 1. These are in addition to existing 50 percent tariffs on Canadian steel and aluminum, and 25 percent on cars, excluding U.S.-made parts.
Canada is Washington’s second-largest export market, with $7.9 billion in goods and $2.2 billion in services exported annually. Washington also imports $17.8 billion worth of goods from Canada each year—over half of it in energy.
The broader relationship is also showing strain, with cross-border travel declining sharply. B.C.-U.S. land border crossings dropped by 43 percent in June compared to the same time last year.
