Economic development minister stresses U.S. Canada relationship amid Trump tax threats

Ontario's economic development minister has issued a statement highlighting the co-operation between American and Ontario automakers amid U.S. president-elect Donald Trump's continuing criticism of companies that build vehicles in Mexico.

In a media release, BradDuguidstated it is "important to remember that President-elect Trump's decisions on trade with Mexico don't reflect the Ontario-U.S. relationship."

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Going even further, the provincial minister saidtrade between the province and its American neighbours will be "vital" to Trump's promises to create jobs and grow his country's economy.

"Canada and the U.S. do $687 billion in trade each year, and half of that comes from Ontario alone," he said, pointing to the integrated supply chain system that means the two countries rely on each other to build vehicles.

Parts cross border seven times

Stephen MacKenzie, CEO of the WindsorEssex Economic Development Corporation, echoed Duguid'spoint, saying the Chrysler Pacifica is an example of the co-operation between the two countries.

"There are parts on the Chrysler Pacifica that actually cross the border seven times in the process before they're finally installed here in Windsor," he said, duringan interview withCBC'sPower and Politics."If you tried to stop that flow you would definitely hurt American workers."

MacKenzieexplained that, compared to Mexico where companies have pledged to spend billions building new vehicle assembly plants, Canada really shouldn't be a cause for concern for the president-elect.

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"We aren't as much of a threat as Mexico," he said. "The integration is remarkable, so what we're hoping is Mr. Trump takes a business approach, not a sound bite approachto making decisions."

MacKenzie called the Ford Motor Company's decision to cancel a planned $1.6 billion plant in Mexico and instead invest $700 million in the assembly plant in Flat Rock. Mich, a "remarkable occurrence" and said his organization will be carefully watching Trump to see how he will interact with Ontario.

Agreements and investment

In his statement, Duguid also cited a recent agreement between Michigan Governor, Rick Snyder and Ontario Premier Kathleen Wynne with the purpose of continuing to grow the auto sector together as a "Great Lakes auto cluster."

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The minister stressed the province had received$1.5 billion in new investment in recent months, calling them "votes of confidence for the Ontario auto sector."

Canadians are also important customers of the American auto market, which exported $59 billion worth of assembled vehicles and parts to Canada in 2015, Duguidexplained.

"The president-elect has committed to creating jobs and grow the American economy, and that means a strong Great Lakes auto sector," Duguid said. "We look forward to continuing our great working relationship with the US government and with individual states."

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