THUNDER BAY – President of the Thunder Bay Chamber of Commerce Charla Robinson said that there is a lot of “uncertainty” about having Donald J. Trump return to the White House this January as the 47th president of the United States of America.
“I've read a number of reports that are concerned about some of the things that he's talked about during the campaign around increasing tariffs and becoming really more protectionist,” Robinson told Newswatch.
She stated that she is expecting much higher tariffs on softwood lumber and other exported products from Canada.
“Because uncertainty tends to have a negative impact on the business environment,” said Robinson. “And also we’re concerned because a lot of the things that he's talked about from an economic perspective actually could fuel inflation even further.”
“He's talked a lot about things that would actually add costs,” she continued.
With the renegotiation of the Canada-US-Mexico Agreement looming in 2026, Robertson said the Thunder Bay Chamber of Commerce is working with the Canadian Chamber of Commerce to “build relationships with other chambers in neighbouring US communities.”
The objective is to connect with other U.S. chambers and share information on why Canada’s resource sectors are important to US businesses and communities.
“That's going to be a bit of a project for the next year and a half, two years, leading into the CUSMA renegotiation,” said Robertson.