Bombardier Drawn Into Escalating U.S.-Canada Trade Dispute
President Donald Trump said Monday that Canadian aircraft manufacturer Bombardier must produce its planes in the United States if it wants continued access to the American market. In a Truth Social post, Trump wrote, “No more selling Bombardier in the United States,” adding that the company should build domestically rather than treat the country as a “piggybank.”
The statement marked another escalation in the ongoing trade dispute between Washington and Ottawa. It came one day before Canadian retaliatory tariffs were scheduled to take effect on a broad range of American products. Canada announced the measures on August 25, describing them as a response designed to match the scale of new United States tariffs on Canadian goods.
Ottawa’s package includes approximately $20 billion in tariffs covering more than 700 American products. The measures follow Trump’s decision to impose 50 percent import taxes on Canadian wine, cement, hockey sticks and other goods after bilateral trade negotiations broke down.
The dispute has also produced competing accounts of why the negotiations failed. United States Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick told CNBC that Canadian officials abandoned a nearly completed agreement for political reasons. Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney, meanwhile, said Canada would return to negotiations when the United States was prepared to do so.
Bombardier did not immediately comment on Trump’s demand. The Montreal-based manufacturer produces business aircraft, while its name also remains associated with regional jets operated by airlines, including the CRJ-900LR pictured at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport in October 2025.
The latest exchange highlights the increasing use of tariffs and market-access threats in the bilateral relationship. No new negotiations were announced, leaving businesses and consumers on both sides of the border awaiting further details about implementation, possible exemptions, the duration of the measures and their potential broader economic effects across North America.