Close X
    Friday, November 29, 2024
    ADVT 
    National

    #BuyCanadian: Pocketbook Patriotism Takes Off Amid U.S. Trade Tensions

    Darpan News Desk The Canadian Press, 14 Jun, 2018 11:42 AM
      Social media users are pledging to #BuyCanadian amid a simmering trade standoff with the U.S., but experts say pocketbook patriotism may have unintended consequences on both sides of the border.
       
       
      Bonnie Hallman of Winnipeg says she cancelled a long-desired trip to Alaska shortly after President Donald Trump took aim at Prime Minister Justin Trudeau for pushing back against American tariffs on steel and aluminum.
       
       
      The 53-year-old says she's now booked to visit P.E.I. next summer because she would rather spend her dollars towards supporting Canadian tourism.
       
       
      Scott Chamberlain, a father of four in Ottawa, says he's been trying to fill his grocery cart with mostly homegrown goods to bolster the Canadian producers who could be hardest hit by cross-border friction over trade.
       
       
      Robert Wolfe, a professor emeritus at Queen's University's School of Policy Studies, says the #BuyCanadian movement could fan the flames of a trade war in which no side would prevail unscathed.
       
       
      He says the mirror of 'buy Canadian' is 'buy American,' which could have a detrimental impact on Canadian companies trading in the U.S. market.
       
       
      "If it starts to escalate the Canada-U.S. tensions so that Americans begin to think we're actually just mad at them, as opposed to mad at their president, that could be difficult for Canada-U.S. relations, and ultimately, not good for the economy."
       
       
      Food economist Mike von Massow of the University of Guelph says a show of Canadian fiscal solidarity may buttress the country's position in trade negotiations, but swearing off American-made products is easier said than done.
       
       
      An online poll conducted by Abacus Data between June 1 to 6 — after Trump said he would impose tariffs on Canadian aluminum and steel but before trade tensions erupted at last week's G7 summit in Quebec — found that more than half of 2,200 Canadian surveyed reported that they intend to avoid buying U.S. wines and cross-border shopping.
       
       
      The polling industry's professional body, the Marketing Research and Intelligence Association, says online surveys cannot be assigned a margin of error because they do not randomly sample the population.
      Prev Next

      MORE National ARTICLES

      WATCH: Feral Peacocks Ruffle Feathers In Surrey, B.C., Neighbourhood

      WATCH: Feral Peacocks Ruffle Feathers In Surrey, B.C., Neighbourhood
       The felling of a favoured peacock perch in a Surrey, B.C., neighbourhood has exposed a divide between locals who like the beautiful birds and those frustrated with the noise, mess and property damage.

      WATCH: Feral Peacocks Ruffle Feathers In Surrey, B.C., Neighbourhood

      'Slut Or Nut' Details Sexual Assault Case And Process Of Reporting Accusations

      'Slut Or Nut' Details Sexual Assault Case And Process Of Reporting Accusations
      "The media hasn't been kind to me. I receive a lot of death threats, rape threats regularly. There are a lot of consequences to being someone that speaks publicly about sexual assault.

      'Slut Or Nut' Details Sexual Assault Case And Process Of Reporting Accusations

      The Inside Story Of The Unsolved Murders Of A Canadian And An American In Belize

      The Inside Story Of The Unsolved Murders Of A Canadian And An American In Belize
      A local pathologist determined that the 52-year-old Matus, who lived part of the year in the Central American country, and Drew DeVoursney, 36, a former marine from Georgia, had died of strangulation.

      The Inside Story Of The Unsolved Murders Of A Canadian And An American In Belize

      Ontario Girl Missing For Nine Months Reunited With Her Mother

      Ontario Girl Missing For Nine Months Reunited With Her Mother
      Police in Ontario say a 16-year-old girl who was taken to Mexico and hadn't been seen since last July has been reunited with her family.

      Ontario Girl Missing For Nine Months Reunited With Her Mother

      Manitoba RCMP Find Starving Horse, Charge Owners With Animal Neglect

      Manitoba RCMP Find Starving Horse, Charge Owners With Animal Neglect
       Mounties in southwestern Manitoba have laid animal cruelty charges against the owners of a horse that was so emaciated it had to be killed.

      Manitoba RCMP Find Starving Horse, Charge Owners With Animal Neglect

      Girl, 13, Aces First Year At University: 'I Was Expecting A Bit More Stress'

      Girl, 13, Aces First Year At University: 'I Was Expecting A Bit More Stress'
      At 7 years old, Xie knew how to add, subtract and multiply negative numbers and decimals, while her classmates were just learning basic patterns and shapes.

      Girl, 13, Aces First Year At University: 'I Was Expecting A Bit More Stress'

      PrevNext