While Canada and the United States' trade relationship experiences a period of transformation, Durham Region's business support community is acting quickly to deepen our local economic strength. The Durham Economic Task Force (DETF) is working closely with our federal, provincial, and local partners to support your business.
The DETF is a collaborative response team made up of Durham Region’s Economic Development and Tourism team; local municipal economic development teams from Pickering, Ajax, Whitby, Oshawa, Clarington, Brock, Uxbridge and Scugog, and the region's chambers of commerce and boards of trade. The members also engage with other key partners like Spark Centre and 1855 Technology Accelerator, post-secondary institutions, business improvement areas (BIAs), the Business Advisory Centre of Durham (BACD), provincial and federal partners, industry associations, and others.
Local response
March 24, 2025: Ajax Council Meeting item 5.4 - Procurement Update regarding Tariffs.
In addition to actions staff have already undertaken, Ajax Council directed staff:
- That the Town of Ajax's Procurement By-Law be amended to enable staff more flexibility in choosing Canadian suppliers by aligning purchasing thresholds with the Canadian Free Trade Agreement (CFTA) and the Canada-European Union Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA) (as amended); and,
- That Procurement staff be directed to report back to Council, or the appropriate committee of council, regarding any major trends or policy changes that may affect procurement for local governments
March 21, 2025: News release, Ajax Sign lights up in red and white to show Canadian solidarity on tariff challenges
March 5, 2025: News release, Regional leaders strengthen economy, challenge US tariffs
March 4, 2025: Statement from Mayor Shaun Collier about the announcement of 25% tariffs on Canadian goods in the US
March 4, 2025: Tariffs took effect as of 12:01 a.m.
February 27, 2025: Letter to Minister Ng Regarding Request for Amendments to the Competition Act to Support Canadian Companies in Municipal Procurement
February 18, 2025: Motion regarding Response to 25% Tariff Threat from United States
February 3, 2025: Trump to delay imposing tariffs on Canada for 1 month, Trudeau says, CBC News
February 3, 2025: Regional Chair and Mayors affirm support of local businesses in response to Canadian export tariffs
Links and Resources
| Ontario Chamber of Commerce |
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The OCC has created a 10-step resource to mitigate its effects and stay competitive. Review the guide. |
| Government of Canada Trade Commissioner Service |
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Business diversification is critical to business success. The Trade Commissioner Service has developed a spotlight page on Market Diversification that offers tools to help you determine export readiness, step-by-step guides, and export maps. Explore your pathways to global expansion. The Canadian Trade Commissioner Service will help exporters navigate the tariffs by:
Learn about the process to request remission of tariffs that apply to certain goods from the U.S. Information from The Canadian Trade Commissioner Service. Review the Canadian Trade Commissioner Service website for more resources. |
| Excellence in Manufacturing Consortium (EMC) |
| The Excellence in Manufacturing Consortium "Member Needs Help" program is an exclusive service for its members, designed to foster collaboration and knowledge sharing within the manufacturing community. For a limited time, the Canada/US Trade Relations Edition is open to all Canadian manufacturers. Here you can review questions and pose new ones to a community of peers and experts. Additionally, if you would like to stay informed with regular email communications on this topic, you can sign up by completing this form. |
| Export Development Canada (EDC) |
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Export Development Canada can support businesses to navigate uncertainty. EDC offers trade support to Canadian companies. Explore how EDC can help. Resources include:
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Canadian Federation of Independent Businesses (CFIB) |
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Review information including overviews of U.S. tariffs, de minimus treatment, CFIB's advocacy efforts, and other details. |
Supports and Funding
- Get access to information for more than 12,000 manufacturing establishments and 250 ecosystem partners in Ontario, visually depicted on an interactive map, with enhanced search features. Explore using Trillium Network GIS Map tool.
- List of products from the United States proposes for 25 per cent tariffs listed as of February 4, 2025.
- Canada Tariff Finder – BDC Quickly get tariff information for specific products and countries.
- Province of Ontario – Information on provincial support for exporters/importers and trade relationships: Building Fortress Am-Can: Ontario’s Am-Can growth plan.
- Explore the Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada (ISED) Business Funding portal. This is a concierge program from the Government of Canada to help find programs, services, and funding available to businesses.
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