Prime Minister Mark Carney signalled that any revamped trade agreement with the United States is unlikely to eliminate Washington’s metal levies, saying negotiations will “intensify” but there is no evidence President Donald Trump is prepared to drop duties that now stand at 50 percent on Canadian steel and aluminium. With U.S. tariffs biting, Carney unveiled a package of protectionist measures in Hamilton aimed at shielding domestic producers from trade diversion and dumping. Canada will impose an immediate 25 percent duty on steel imports from all non-U.S. countries when the metal was melted and poured in China. Ottawa will also tighten tariff-rate quotas: imports from free-trade partners other than the United States will be allowed up to last year’s volumes, while shipments from nations without trade pacts are capped at one-half of 2024 volumes. Any deliveries above those ceilings will face a 50 percent surcharge. The government is pairing the border measures with C$1 billion in new funding for steel-industry projects and a C$70 million programme to retrain up to 10,000 workers. Federal procurement rules will be rewritten to prioritise Canadian steel, the prime minister said during a visit to Walters Group, a fabricator in Ontario’s steel hub. Industry lobbyists praised the tougher stance, arguing that Trump’s tariffs have redirected cheap foreign metal toward Canada. Finance Minister François-Philippe Champagne added that Ottawa will “double down” on efforts to secure the best possible trade accord, but reiterated that there is “no evidence” the United States will agree to zero tariffs.