He told reporters Wednesday that before the U.S.\u00a0imposed\u00a0tariffs earlier this year, about 70 per cent of Walters Group’s\u00a0steel fabrications were\u00a0exported to the U.S. Now, that number is nearly zero.\u00a0<\/p>\n
“We have to be very focused on Canadian work,” Koppelaar said. “We got things going on south of the border we can’t control. But what we can control is here in Canada. Let’s make Canada the best and let’s support Canadian steel fabricators.”\u00a0<\/p>\n
Trump first imposed 25 per cent tariffs on the Canadian steel and aluminum sectors in March, then hiked them to 50 per cent in June. The U.S. has also levied similar tariffs on many other countries, including China.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Koppelaar described China as a “bad actor” and supports\u00a0Canada’s attempts to clamp down.<\/p>\n
“When the U.S. closes its borders to certain products, Canadian borders are still open and all that fabricated steel is coming into Canada,” he said.<\/p>\n
WATCH |\u00a0Carney is asked about possibility of U.S. tariffs in a deal, potential retaliation:![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/1752692408_897_default.jpg\")
<\/p>\n
\u2018It\u2019s a negotiation\u2019: Carney asked about possibility of U.S. tariffs in a deal, potential retaliation<\/p>\n
Prime Minister Mark Carney, speaking Wednesday in Hamilton at an event about steel, declined to offer specifics around negotiations with the U.S., saying \u2018we\u2019ll see,\u2019 when pressed on whether Canada would impose more tariffs.<\/p>\n
The most recent of Canada’s\u00a0attempts came earlier Wednesday, when Koppelaar stood alongside Mark Carney as the prime minister toured the facility\u00a0and promised to limit the\u00a0amount of cheap, foreign steel entering the country.<\/p>\n
Carney said new quotas\u00a0would be in place by the end of the month, building off of changes his government announced in June. The tariff quota system allows only a set level of product to enter Canada at a lower tariff rate.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Calls for more protections for domestic market<\/p>\n
Steel products from non-free trade agreement countries, including China, will see their\u00a0tariff rate quota\u00a0tighten to half\u00a0of 2024 volumes. A 50 per cent tariff will be imposed on any imports beyond those levels, Carney said.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Countries with free trade agreements with Canada, excluding the U.S. and Mexico,\u00a0will see a 50 per cent tariff\u00a0applied\u00a0to imports surpassing 2024 volumes.\u00a0The prime minister also said Canada will implement additional tariffs of 25 per cent on imports from all non-U.S. countries containing steel melted and poured in China.<\/p>\n
![\"Man](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/walt-koppelaar.jpg\")
Walt Koppelaar, Walters Group’s executive vice-president of sales and U.S. operations, told reporters at the plant on Wednesday, ‘We have to be very focused on Canadian work.’ (CBC)<\/p>\n
It’s a step in the right direction, said Koppelar, but he and other Canadian steel producers are waiting for more changes from the federal government.<\/p>\n
When Ottawa financially supports big companies and automakers\u00a0setting up in Canada,\u00a0there should be “more strings attached” so steel is sourced domestically\u00a0and not from the U.S. or China, he said.<\/p>\n
That’s also\u00a0important\u00a0for public infrastructure projects, said Keanin Loomis, president and CEO of the Canadian Institute of Steel Construction. The Hamilton resident was\u00a0also at Carney’s announcement Wednesday and supports the quota tariff measures.<\/p>\n
While initially the companies\u00a0using domestic steel may be entering higher bids for contracts, the quality is higher than steel made or fabricated in countries like China, and with less issues down the line, Loomis said.<\/p>\n
“I think Canadian taxpayers expect that when they’re checking the labels of their food right now in grocery stores and being mindful of where they’re travelling, that when we’re building a bridge in Canada, we’re supporting Canadian firms because that money circulates within our economy.”<\/p>\n