Donald Trump calls for US boycott of Canada’s Bombardier jets
President’s post on social media comes hours before Ottawa’s retaliatory tariffs against Washington take effect
Donald Trump has called for a boycott of Bombardier, the Canadian business jet manufacturer, as Ottawa prepares to impose C$27bn (US$20bn) in retaliatory tariffs on US goods in the intensifying trade war between the countries.
In a lengthy Truth Social post on Monday, Trump said there should be “NO MORE SELLING BOMBARDIER IN THE UNITED STATES! Their products aren’t good enough!”
He added that more than 50 per cent of the company’s revenue came from the US. “If they want our Market, they must build here, and stop treating America like a ‘piggy bank’.”
Trump also accused Ottawa of blocking “Gulfstream Aerospace from doing business in Canada — Completely unjust and unfair!”
The US president’s post came hours before new Canadian counter-tariffs on US goods came into effect at midnight on Tuesday.
Canada’s “dollar-for-dollar” move applies levies of up to 50 per cent on US$20bn worth of US-origin goods. They come after the White House last month imposed tariffs on an equal value of Canadian goods.
The Trump administration has threatened additional 50 per cent tariffs as the trade war between the neighbours shows no sign of easing.
Leaders from both countries have said no formal talks are planned this week to resolve the impasse, as each side blames the other for the collapse of trade deal negotiations.
In January, Trump took aim at Canada’s aerospace industry by threatening to “decertify” its jets in the US in a separate attack on his northern neighbour.
The White House did not immediately clarify whether Trump’s latest attack was a call for additional trade measures against Bombardier or for Americans to stop buying the company’s products.
A spokesperson for Canada’s transport minister Steven MacKinnon told the FT: “Gulfstream aircraft is and can be freely sold and operated in Canada.”
Bombardier employs more than 3,000 people at nine US facilities and sources goods from 2,800 American suppliers.
“Bombardier values its great partnership with American companies and its US employees,” the company said in a statement, adding: “Our plan is to continue to invest in our people, our customers and the communities in which we operate across the country.”
Prime Minister Mark Carney last week said Ottawa was ready to sit down for talks with Washington but cautioned a deal was unlikely considering Trump’s hostility.
“When the Americans stop doing memes, stop throwing shade, stop trying to be tough and start being serious about having those discussions, we can have those discussions,” he said.
Trump continued to taunt Canada on Monday with a Truth Social post showing all of North and Central America, including Canada and Greenland, covered with the American flag.
Speaking to the FT last week, US trade representative Jamieson Greer blamed Canada for turning down “a very good deal”, saying Ottawa had overplayed its hand and warning that Trump relished the trade fight.
“President Trump actually loves this kind of thing . . . it’s kind of what he enjoys doing,” Greer said.
Trump’s trade official also hinted that the president would respond to Canada’s tariffs with additional levies on the US side. “We’ve presented options to the president,” Greer said. “I think he might pull the trigger.”
An official for the Canadian government declined to comment.
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The breakdown in talks came after 18 months of tension in which the US threatened annexation through “economic force”, as well as tariffs on the steel, aluminium, automotive and lumber sectors.
Following the end of trade talks over Washington’s new 50 per cent tariff, Canada on August 25 announced retaliatory levies of 15, 25 or 50 per cent on $20bn worth of US imports, such as cheese, honey, appliances, cosmetics, agricultural equipment, motorcycles and video game consoles.
In response, Trump threatened to double duties on Canadian cars to 50 per cent. He then signed an executive order renaming Lake Ontario, which straddles the US and Canada, “Lake America”.
Robert Zoellick, the ex-head of the World Bank and a former US trade representative, said Trump’s threats against Canada were self-defeating.
“No American leader should dishonour the country’s past by treating our closest partners so shabbily,” he wrote in the FT.