Toronto, Calgary among cities becoming less reliant on U.S. trade: report - BERITAJA

A mini group of cities crossed the state drove Canada’s advancement connected diversifying waste and acquisition successful 2025, while others fell behind, says a caller study from the Canadian Chamber of Commerce.

The study says Calgary, Ottawa-Gatineau, Toronto, Saskatoon and Kelowna, B.C., are the cities that made the strongest gains successful export diversification beyond the U.S. marketplace past year.

Of the cities surveyed, Calgary and Ottawa-Gatineau posted the largest increases successful exports to non-U.S. markets betwixt 2024 and 2025 — 64.67 per cent and 64.04 per cent, respectively.

Toronto’s non-U.S. exports accrued by 32.82 per cent, followed by Saskatoon (32.04 per cent) and Kelowna (28.63 per cent). Non-U.S. exports accrued by 16.8 per cent countrywide.

“Together, this comparatively mini group of cities relationship for a disproportionate stock of Canada’s caller export diversification gains, reinforcing really uneven the country’s waste and acquisition accommodation remains crossed regions,” says the report.

The study says galore different cities didn’t spot the aforesaid gains. It says manufacturing regions successful Ontario continued to look weaker wide waste and acquisition capacity and “limited diversification momentum.”

“Highly U.S.-integrated manufacturing regions, including Oshawa, London and Kitchener-Cambridge-Waterloo, are showing immoderate of the clearest signs of trade-related economical stress,” says the report.

“These cities stay heavy tied to the U.S. market, while maturation successful exports extracurricular the U.S. has been constricted aliases insufficient to offset broader weakness successful waste and acquisition activity and section economical conditions.”

The study says the information points to a “growing divergence” successful section waste and acquisition capacity crossed Canada.

“Some cities are successfully expanding into world markets and building much diversified export bases, while others stay much exposed to U.S. demand, waste and acquisition disruptions and argumentation uncertainty,” it says.

The enclosure released a study past twelvemonth that said Calgary; Saint John, N.B.; and Windsor, Ont., were the Canadian cities that would beryllium deed the hardest by U.S. tariffs. That study said immoderate Canadian cities, including Victoria and Halifax, were little exposed to tariffs because they export much to Asia and Europe.

“A twelvemonth later, that vulnerability is seemingly showing up successful economical outcomes locally, though it was not an nonstop lucifer pinch who we expected could person been worst hit,” says the caller report. “As expected, Canadian cities pinch greater vulnerability to U.S. waste and acquisition are experiencing much section economical stress.”

The national authorities has group retired to double non-U.S. exports complete the adjacent decade. The government’s outpouring economical update said non-U.S. equipment and services exports accrued by $33 cardinal successful 2025 complete 2024.

While the Canada-U.S.-Mexico Agreement connected waste and acquisition is owed for a reappraisal this year, U.S. President Donald Trump has utilized different devices to deed countries about the world pinch tariffs. Canada is being hammered by Trump’s sector-specific duties connected steel, aluminum, automobiles and cabinetry.

The chamber’s caller study says caller Statistics Canada information connected business responses to U.S. tariffs suggests galore Canadian firms are “adapting cautiously” alternatively than fundamentally repositioning their operations.

The study says that while exports to non-U.S. markets roseate sharply betwixt 2024 and 2025, overmuch of that maturation came from existing exporters expanding their scope alternatively than caller firms entering world markets. The number of Canadian exporters trading to non-U.S. markets accrued by conscionable six per cent twelvemonth complete year.

“While less businesses study taking nary action compared to a twelvemonth ago, comparatively fewer are actively diversifying income aliases suppliers extracurricular the U.S.,” the study says. “Instead, firms are much apt to beryllium raising prices, expanding home sourcing aliases delaying description plans.”

The study says information suggests galore businesses still expect Canada-U.S. waste and acquisition conditions to stabilize, contempt signs that the world trading situation is “becoming much fragmented and little predictable.”

It says waste and acquisition conditions are apt to stay much volatile, much uncertain and much uneven going forward. The expertise to adapt, it says, depends connected wherever firms operate, what they nutrient and really limited they are connected a azygous market.

The study besides says about 90 per cent of non-exporting Canadian businesses still picture their operations arsenic “local.”

“The consequence is that Canadian firms whitethorn beryllium underinvesting successful longer-term diversification astatine precisely the infinitesimal erstwhile resilience and marketplace description are becoming much important to competitiveness and growth,” says the report.

“If Canada wants diversification to go structural, much firms — particularly (small and medium-sized enterprises) — will request to participate successful world trade.”

Candace Laing, president and CEO of the Canadian Chamber of Commerce, said successful a news merchandise that Canada’s waste and acquisition narration pinch the United States will “always matter deeply” but the investigation shows resilience progressively depends connected the expertise to diversify.

“Some Canadian cities are adapting quickly to this era of repeated world economical shocks, while others stay highly exposed to U.S. argumentation and request uncertainty,” she said. “Canada does not conscionable request much waste and acquisition — it needs much traders.”