With newly re-elected President Donald Trump threatening to impose 25-per-cent tariffs on Canadian exports, businesses that export to the U.S. may want to rethink their strategy. Export Development Canada is preparing to help companies do just that.
Whether Trump goes ahead with his threat, “the reality is we’re already seeing certain industries being hurt by tariffs,” says Christopher Theeparajah, a senior trade finance manager with EDC working with companies on Vancouver Island and coastal British Columbia.
“So we are going to have to rally around certain companies and certain sectors to continue to uncover new opportunities, perhaps outside of the United States.”
While the U.S. is B.C.’s largest trading partner, the province relies less on the U.S. for its exports than Canada does as a whole. In 2023, more than 75 per cent of Canadian exports went to the U.S. compared to just over 50 per cent of B.C.’s exports. This province already exports significantly to Japan, South Korea, China and India.
The Indo-Pacific region is the area of focus right now, Theeparajah says.
“The countries in that region already make up the world’s largest growing economy. So to scale companies into markets like Indonesia, Korea, Japan, I think that’s where the opportunity is going to be moving forward.”
EDC hosts webinars and workshops for companies looking to expand. It also proactively reaches out to companies it thinks have export potential. It even hosts trade missions for companies to visit potential markets, where EDC will have people on the ground with expertise in the area.
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