The Associated Equipment Distributors (AED) is urging the Government of Canada to make free and fair trade with the United States a top priority as Ottawa participates in the review of the Canada-United States-Mexico Agreement and renewed negotiations with Washington. The equipment dealers' association made the call during its annual advocacy day.
AED's position is that an integrated North American economy works, while tariffs on either side of the border raise costs for farmers, contractors, miners and builders that Canada relies on for growth. The group says cross-border production is embedded in the equipment sector: machines are built, sourced and serviced on both sides of the border, and many components cross several times before a machine reaches a customer.
McGuire said every tariff, whether imposed by Washington or Ottawa, adds cost at each crossing, and those costs are ultimately paid by Canadian families after falling first on farmers, contractors and municipalities.
AED said it was disappointed in August that the two countries could not reach a trade agreement and has since stepped up advocacy on both sides of the border. In September, McGuire wrote to U.S. governors in states with significant exposure to Canadian trade, asking them to press for a return to the bargaining table. AED's U.S. members have also met with more than 100 members of the U.S. House and Senate, and Canadian board member Brian Osterndorff recently presented the association's case to the Senate of Canada.
Recommendations for Ottawa
AED's recommendations focus on reducing tariff risk for equipment and components while protecting the sectors that depend on them.
- Seek tariff certainty and sector-specific relief. Pursue exemptions and clarified tariff relief for the heavy-equipment industry in the CUSMA discussions, and use diplomatic channels to prevent new tariffs on equipment and components.
- Avoid retaliation that targets equipment. Tariffs and retaliatory tariffs on industrial goods hit Canadian farmers, contractors and resource producers first, AED says. Any Canadian response should be carefully targeted and should not penalize the equipment Canadians use to build and produce.
- Set predictable rules for critical components. Engine parts, safety electronics and other specialized inputs often have no practical alternative supplier outside North America.
- Work with industry and labour. Assess the full impact of tariffs and develop contingency measures that safeguard Canadian jobs and investment.
- Build resilience at home. Advance critical infrastructure and support skilled-trades training so Canadian industries can invest with confidence.
McGuire said the sectors governments rely on to build housing, develop critical minerals, strengthen energy security and feed Canadians all depend on reliable access to equipment and integrated North American supply chains. He described the equipment industry as an enabling industry and said AED is ready to be a partner to government.
He also linked trade stability to purchasing decisions. When customers cannot count on stable prices and stable trade rules, they delay purchases, McGuire said. Those delays reduce work for technicians and hold back projects Canada needs, from housing to critical minerals to food production.
AED said its resolve remains strong and that equipment dealers and manufacturers in both countries agree free and fair trade is the best path to prosperity for the sectors they serve. The association said it wants Canadian decision-makers to have the facts about what is at stake and to encourage efforts to get both governments back to the table.