How will tariffs and counter-tariffs impact businesses and residents in Ottawa?

This story is part of the City of Ottawa Service Reviews: an initiative aimed at ensuring our services are meeting your needs. Visit ottawa.ca/YourIdeas today.   Every day, there seems to be more talk about tariffs in the ongoing trade dispute between Canada and the United States. Even if tariffs are not in place, the threat of impending tariffs can create anxiety among Ottawa residents and business owners. That’s why the City of Ottawa has created an online resource to provide information for residents and business owners to help them navigate the potentially choppy waters of tariffs and counter-tariffs. Tariffs are a tax on imported goods, paid by the person or company that imports them. The cost of the tariff is typically passed on to the consumer in the receiving market in the form of higher prices, similar to a sales tax. If the U.S. moves forward with tariffs on Canadian products and Canada imposes counter-tariffs, Canadian consumers will experience higher prices when purchasing goods imported from the U.S. as well as for domestically produced goods with American components. Some tariff impacts could be:

• A decrease in sales for local businesses who export significantly to the U.S.
• Higher prices for products imported from the U.S.
• A decrease in sales for local businesses that sell U.S. products, due to inevitably higher prices

We have gathered some resources from multiple partner agencies to help you help Canadian businesses who need your support, including:

• Ottawa Board of Trade
• Ottawa Coalition of Business Improvement Areas
• Invest Ottawa
• Government of Canada
• Canadian Federation of Independent Business
• Canadian Chamber of Commerce
• Export Development Canada

And we always encourage you to support Ottawa-based businesses. Remember to buy local and then share your positive shopping and dining experiences with friends and family. Support area businesses and entrepreneurs on social media. Amplifying their messaging or providing positive reviews can have an enormous impact for them. Your city, your ideas! Connecting businesses with resources is one example of how we work with our partners to create prosperity for our economy during both prosperous and challenging times. Do you have ideas related to this or other City services? Share your ideas at engage.ottawa.ca. For more information on City programs and services, visit ottawa.ca, call 3-1-1 (TTY: 613-580-2401) or 613-580-2400 to contact the City using Canada Video Relay Service. You can also connect with us through Facebook, X (Twitter) and Instagram.