A Hamilton man has been charged with assault after a fight between "yellow vest" demonstrators and local anti-fascism protesters.

A group of people wearing yellow vests were picketing in front of Hamilton city hall at 11 a.m. Saturday when a group of counter-protesters arrived. There was a "verbal exchange" that escalated to physical violence in the middle of Main Street, police say.

A 25-year-old man was charged with assault with a weapon, possession of a prohibited weapon and causing a disturbance. He was released on a promise to appear in court.

The man was not part of the yellow vest group, says Staff Sgt. Michelle Wiley of Hamilton Police Service. The weapon involved was a stick, she says.

One person received minor injuries and no one was taken to hospital.

Yellow vest protests have appeared across Canada. They protest what they call mass immigration, as well as the federal carbon tax and the United Nations migration pact. Saturday's Hamilton rally included Paul Fromm, a known white supremacist who ran for mayor last year.

The yellow vest concept started in France, where people first donned the vests to protest a fuel tax increase.

The Paris yellow vest protests later morphed into demonstrations against France's high cost of living, income equality and President Emmanuel Macron.