Article content

MONTREAL — U.S. President Donald Trump’s threat to impose 25 per cent tariffs on auto imports from Canada would devastate the integrated supply chain that has taken decades to build and cause job losses on both sides of the border, industry experts warn.

“It’s definitely going to impact the whole supply chain of automobiles in Canada and in the U.S.,” says Laurie Tannous, special adviser for the Cross-Border Institute at the University of Windsor.

We apologize, but this video has failed to load.

tap here to see other videos from our team. Try refreshing your browser, or Trump's auto tariffs would devastate supply chains, cause mass layoffs: experts Back to video

The North American auto sector is so highly integrated that parts and components can cross Canada and Mexico’s borders as many as eight times before being installed in a final assembly plant.

Some experts say the tariff would be imposed on completed cars while others say it would be charged each time a part crosses into the U.S.

Shifting tool lines to the United States would be so complicated it could take many months if it can be done at all, Tannous said in an interview.