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The steps intensify the fallout from U.S. President Donald Trump’s trade fight, in particular U.S. tariffs of 25 per cent on steel and 10 per cent on aluminum that hit Canada, the EU and other nations. The moves have prompted retaliation from the U.S.’s biggest trading partners, and forced companies like Harley-Davidson Inc. to shift production.

The Canadian measures are expected to include new quotas on certain steel imports to prevent dumping, with tariffs applied above that threshold, the people said. The announcement could come as early as next week, though the government hasn’t finalized its plans, the people said. A spokesman for Finance Minister Bill Morneau declined to comment. Representatives for Foreign Minister Chrystia Freeland, who handles U.S. trade issues, didn’t immediately return requests for comment.

Imports Data

Canadian steel imports in 2017 totaled $9 billion, according to U.S. data, with 55 per cent of that coming from the U.S. The next biggest sources of Canadian steel are China, South Korea, Brazil and Turkey, the data show.

The U.S. steel tariffs open the door to a potential flood of cheap imports, said Sean Donnelly, chief executive officer of ArcelorMittal Dofasco, the Canadian unit of ArcelorMittal of Luxembourg.

“We must be able to operate in an un-distorted, market-based competitive environment,” Donnelly told lawmakers at a parliamentary committee in Ottawa Tuesday. “Canada’s response to past and future threats from unfairly traded and diverted offshore imports is critical.”