Ontario’s staring down the barrel of Trump’s trade war—and it’s not blinking. With American tariffs slamming Canadian goods, the province is rewriting its playbook, eyeing fresh markets and overseas cash once the dust settles.
The U.S. sucks up $500 billion in annual two-way trade with Ontario, making it the top dog for 17 states and runner-up for 11 more. Premier Doug Ford used to crow about this “Am-Can Fortress,” a bromance built on shared history and highways. But Trump’s 25% steel and aluminum tariffs—plus looming hits on lumber, dairy, and maybe everything else—have torched that cozy vibe.
Ford’s not sitting still. “We’ll buy Ontario first, Canada second,” he declared Monday at Queen’s Park. “Some stuff we can’t make here—I get it. But we’ve got 51 tariff-free trade deals worldwide. We’ve been diversifying, and now it’s time to floor it.”
Economic Development Minister Vic Fedeli’s riding the same wave, preaching a two-pronged gospel. “Let’s crank up U.S. exports—they’re right next door, and we’ve got a century of trust,” he said in a recent sit-down. “But we’ve got to hit the gas overseas too.”
Ontario’s already got 14 trade outposts—London, Munich, Seoul, Tokyo, you name it—with a 15th dropping soon, Fedeli teased. Those offices have lured $25 billion in new investments, and the shiny Singapore hub’s opening doors to Cambodia, Malaysia, and beyond. India’s the golden goose: exports there jumped from $400 million to $623 million since 2019, after Fedeli’s team painted the subcontinent red with trade missions. “I thought $400 million was a typo,” he laughed. “Turns out it’s a blank canvas.”
Those globe-trotting days are on ice, though. “Trump’s tariffs are the fire in our house right now,” Fedeli said. “We’re staying put until we’ve got no choice—companies worldwide are begging us to seal deals, but they know we’re in a fight for survival.”
From EV battery plants to new markets, Ontario’s betting big on a world beyond the U.S. shadow. Trump’s moves might sting, but they’re lighting a fire under a province ready to rewrite the trade map.