The political slogans of “America First” and “Canada First” may be heralding paths that will ultimately fulfill the Christian caution that “the first will be last” [Mark 10:31; Mt 19:30; Lk 13:30].
In an editorial in the Economist, dated April 2nd 2025 Mr Trump is quoted as saying that he “couldn’t care less” if car prices rise as a result of his tariffs.
But pricier imports and the rising cost of making cars in America will undoubtedly hit sales. Americans bought 16m cars last year. This year that figure could tumble by 1m-2.5m, analysts predict, with the models most affected being cheap ones that would be unprofitable to import or manufacture at home. Making fewer, more expensive cars and pricing out poorer buyers is an odd sort of liberation. (the Economist, n.d.)
Unifor, Canada’s largest union in the private sector, representing 320,000 workers in every major area of the economy, reports that Stellantis has responded to the imposition of a 25% auto tariff with the temporary layoff of thousands of Unifor Local 444 members at Windsor Assembly Plant and additional layoffs in Mexico and at U.S. facilities.
“Unifor warned that U.S. tariffs would hurt auto workers almost immediately and in this case the layoffs were announced before the auto tariff even came into effect,” said Unifor National President Lana Payne. “Trump is about to learn how interconnected the North American production system is the hard way, with auto workers paying the price for that lesson.” (the Economist, n.d.)
Bridge Michigan, a self proclaimed nonpartisan, nonprofit news source, notes that Trump previously imposed targeted tariffs on steel and aluminum, in addition to targeted 25% tariffs on certain Canadian and Mexican imports.
Economists at the University of Michigan recently predicted steel and aluminum tariffs will cost the state about 2,300 payroll jobs in 2026 — but their forecast is based on an assumption that "long-lasting, broad-based tariffs on Mexico and Canada will be avoided."
Uncertainty remains as to what the administration’s tariff plan means for Michigan’s economy, though experts foresee increased prices for consumers and retaliatory tariffs from other countries that could undo any potential benefits.
“In the sense of applying to a very broad range of goods and services, I would expect the cost-benefit ratio of those tariffs to be less favorable to Michigan,” said Gabriel Ehrlich, an economic forecaster at the University of Michigan.
“At least with the auto tariffs, there is an important local industry that they're aiming to protect,” he continued, noting that auto import tariffs set to begin Thursday will nonetheless be “very disruptive.” (Trump Announces Sweeping New Tariffs: What They Mean for Michigan, n.d.)
The Trade War coverage on BNNBloomberg.ca includes an article by Stan Choe, of the Associated Press, reporting that world markets are reeling as Trump’s tariffs tank stocks. Little was spared in financial markets as fear flared globally about the potentially toxic mix of higher inflation and weakening economic growth that tariffs can create.
Everything from crude oil to Big Tech stocks to the value of the U.S. dollar against other currencies fell. Even gold, which has hit records recently as investors sought something safer to own, pulled lower. Some of the worst hits walloped smaller U.S. companies, and the Russell 2000 index of smaller stocks dropped 5.9% to pull it more than 20% below its record.
Investors worldwide knew Trump was going to announce a sweeping set of tariffs late Wednesday, and fears surrounding it had already pulled Wall Street’s main measure of health, the S&P 500 index, 10% below its all-time high. But Trump still managed to surprise them with “the worst case scenario for tariffs,” according to Mary Ann Bartels, chief investment officer at Sanctuary Wealth. (Choe, n.d.)
The chaos and disruption that has followed Trump Tariff policy is hardly the environment that the world investment community supports in an economy that claims to be “Number One”.
References
Choe, S. (n.d.). World markets reeling as Trump’s tariffs tank stocks. BNN Bloomberg - Canada Business News, TSX Today, Oil and Energy Prices. Retrieved April 3, 2025, from https://www.bnnbloomberg.ca/tariffs/2025/04/03/dow-drops-1100-as-us-stock-market-leads-a-worldwide-sell-off-following-trumps-tariff-announcement/
the Economist. (n.d.). Donald Trump’s plan for American carmaking is full of potholes. The Economist | Independent journalism. Retrieved April 3, 2025, from https://www.economist.com/business/2025/03/31/donald-trumps-plan-for-american-carmaking-is-full-of-potholes?utm_campaign=r.the-economist-today&utm_medium=email.internal-newsletter.np&utm_source=salesforce-marketing-cloud&utm_term=4/2/2025&utm_id=2072047
Trump announces sweeping new tariffs: What they mean for Michigan. (n.d.). Bridge Michigan: Michigan news, state, politics, jobs, education. Retrieved April 3, 2025, from https://www.bridgemi.com/michigan-government/trump-announces-sweeping-new-tariffs-what-they-mean-michigan
