CANADA does not hold out much hope that Washington will quickly lift tariffs that it imposed on steel and aluminum exports and is resisting a U.S. push to agree to strict quotas, two sources familiar with the matter said.

The administration of U.S. President Donald Trump imposed the sanctions on Canada and Mexico in June, citing national security reasons. Although Canada and Mexico agreed a renewed continental trade deal last week, the measures remain in place.

Canada is the single largest supplier of both aluminum and steel to the United States. Washington worries that nations could try to ship supplies through Canada and pretend the metals had been produced in Canadian facilities.

In a bid to address those concerns, the Canadian Government — acting on a promise it made in March — said it would impose new quotas and tariffs on imports of seven categories of steel from many countries to head off a potential rise in imports.

A tariff of 25 percent will apply starting Oct. 25 to imports “in cases where the level of imports from trading partners exceeds historical norms,” a government statement said.

Mexico, one of the countries targeted by the new measures, said it “lamented” Ottawa’s decision and would seek to have its exporters’ steel products excluded from the trade protections.

Jerry Dias, head of Unifor, Canada’s largest private sector union, said the safeguards would keep out subsidized steel from China and South Korea.

“It’s also sending a message to the United States,” he said. “Now that the issue is resolved, there’s no meaningful reason for the U.S. to continue to punish the steel industry on both sides of the border.”(SD-Agencies)