This is worth reading past the headline. This MAGA-aligned steel billionaire is asking Carney for Trump-style protectionism.
Barry Zekelman — a billionaire steel executive with operations on both sides of the border — is urging the Carney government to adopt Trump-style trade barriers, arguing that Canada is being used as a back door for foreign steel.
What’s telling is that Industry Minister Mélanie Joly explicitly rejects this approach. Her position, as reported, is that Canada should focus on cooperation and existing enforcement mechanisms rather than sweeping protectionist measures.
Zekelman frames this as defending Canadian workers, but the scale matters. His company operates roughly 20 plants across Canada and the US, while the broader steel sector employs about 123,000 Canadians directly and indirectly — still a small share of the national workforce.
This isn’t an argument against steelworkers. It’s a question about whether national trade policy should be reshaped around the demands of a single billionaire — especially when the solution being proposed closely mirrors Trump’s economic nationalism.
gramur_natsy on
I think the FT paywall is probably suppressing engagement here. If anyone has access and can summarize the core argument, that would be super helpful for the discussion🙏
gramur_natsy on
Hey all, for anyone blocked by the FT paywall, here are some free parallel reads on the same topic:
4 Comments
This is worth reading past the headline. This MAGA-aligned steel billionaire is asking Carney for Trump-style protectionism.
Barry Zekelman — a billionaire steel executive with operations on both sides of the border — is urging the Carney government to adopt Trump-style trade barriers, arguing that Canada is being used as a back door for foreign steel.
What’s telling is that Industry Minister Mélanie Joly explicitly rejects this approach. Her position, as reported, is that Canada should focus on cooperation and existing enforcement mechanisms rather than sweeping protectionist measures.
Zekelman frames this as defending Canadian workers, but the scale matters. His company operates roughly 20 plants across Canada and the US, while the broader steel sector employs about 123,000 Canadians directly and indirectly — still a small share of the national workforce.
This isn’t an argument against steelworkers. It’s a question about whether national trade policy should be reshaped around the demands of a single billionaire — especially when the solution being proposed closely mirrors Trump’s economic nationalism.
I think the FT paywall is probably suppressing engagement here. If anyone has access and can summarize the core argument, that would be super helpful for the discussion🙏
Hey all, for anyone blocked by the FT paywall, here are some free parallel reads on the same topic:
Here’s a [**Yahoo Finance Canada piece on Barry Zekelman**](https://ca.finance.yahoo.com/news/meet-trump-supporting-man-steel-145441031.html?utm_source=chatgpt.com) that explains who he is, his support for Trump’s steel tariffs, and why he’s pushing protectionism in Canada.
This [**United Steelworkers Canada article**](https://usw.ca/friday-steelmakers-and-steelworkers-call-on-government-to-stand-up-for-canadian-steel/?utm_source=chatgpt.com) covers the broader industry and union argument for tariffs, Buy-Canadian rules, and tighter controls on dumped steel.
And here’s [**Zekelman Industries’ own announcement**](https://www.zekelman.com/news/zekelman-industries-launches-initiative-rewarding-canadians-who-spot-imported-steel-being-used-in-public-projects/?utm_source=chatgpt.com) about their Buy-Canadian campaign, just for direct context.
Not the FT article, but they hit most of the same points.
Tariffs are a hidden sale tax paid by the consumers.
I do not think increasing prices for Canadians is a good idea right now… Everything is already super expensive, let’s not make it worse.