OTTAWA– Canada, once seen as a land of economic growth, is now facing a troubling decline in capital investment under the current Liberal government. The country’s financial foundation is weakening, and Prime Minister Mark Carney’s ambitious goals have become mired in doubt.
Failed trade talks with both the United States and China have left Canadian industries struggling, inflation rising, and stable job prospects shrinking. Many Canadians can only find low-paying, part-time work as a record number of immigrants arrive, while Carney’s answer has been to take on more debt to mask failures in diplomacy.
The steep 100 percent tariff China recently slapped on Canada’s $5 billion canola sector is a sharp sign of the Liberal government’s struggle to defend the country’s economic interests.
When Mark Carney took over the Liberal party in March 2025, after Justin Trudeau, he pitched himself as an experienced financial leader. With his background as a former head of the Bank of Canada and the Bank of England, he promised to breathe life back into Canada’s economy, stand firm against President Trump’s trade actions, and expand trade partnerships, creating a buffer against outside shocks.
Countless Canadians, drained by ten years of Trudeau’s uncertain management, supported Carney’s vision for a strong, self-reliant economy. His campaign words carried a strong sense of national pride: “America wants our land, our resources, our water. They want our country. That will never happen.” He promised to defend Canadian rights and secure better trade deals.
Now, barely half a year later, Carney’s pledges look empty. Capital investment, crucial for growth, is draining away. Foreign investors once trusted Canada’s reliability and rich natural resources, but many are leaving due to the Liberal government’s poor handling of an international trade dispute set off by Trump’s tariffs.
Carney Silent on Tariffs
The United States, Canada’s top export market, set 35 percent tariffs on goods from Canada and a crushing 50 percent on steel and aluminum. Carney said he would counter these moves with sharp negotiations, but his talks with the Trump administration fell apart, and he has since admitted that no evidence suggests a tariff-free trade deal is likely.
He refused to match U.S. tariffs with similar Canadian measures, choosing only a few mild responses, which critics call weak and damaging to Canadian industry. Matters with China have only grown worse. In a heavy blow to Prairie farmers, China hit Canadian canola meal and oil with a 100 percent tariff in March 2025, followed by a 75.8 percent tariff on canola seed in August.
These moves have shattered a $5 billion industry supporting over 200,000 jobs, all justified by Beijing’s accusations of dumping, which many say lack proof. Farmers are hurting as the harvest approaches, and Carney has offered little public response.
Conservative leader Pierre Poilievre has openly criticized Carney for neglecting agricultural workers, noting the Prime Minister has not spoken with Trump in almost two months and has failed to challenge China’s aggressive trade measures. The canola crisis highlights Carney’s wider inability to shield Canadian interests on the global stage, leaving rural communities to shoulder the impact of his weak diplomacy.
Already struggling with inflation during Trudeau’s term, Canadians have seen prices soar under Carney. Tariffs from Trump, along with global market swings, have pushed up costs across the board. The U.S. Commerce Department reported a small rise in inflation in June 2025, but for Canadians, the effects are far more severe.
Canada’s Job Market Horrific
The prices of food and housing have jumped, pinching families already unsure about the future. Carney’s claim that Canada’s financial system is “rock solid” seems disconnected from reality as families struggle to cover basic expenses.
His plan to grow the economy by boosting investment in natural resources and breaking down trade barriers between provinces has yet to bring any real relief; for many, these ideas feel like public relations rather than real solutions.
Canada’s once-steady job market is now in disarray. In the short time since Carney became prime minister, unemployment has grown by 50,000. The full-time, well-paying jobs he promised have given way to part-time, lower-wage work, with Canadians squeezed out by a wave of new immigrants arriving under the Liberals’ immigration approach.
While meant to support the workforce, this large influx has overloaded public services and increased competition for limited jobs. Carney’s failure to spark job growth has left many Canadians scrambling, with doubts growing about whether the government puts citizens’ needs first.
Rather than attract investment to rebuild the economy, Carney has turned to heavy borrowing. The national deficit, which already surged under Trudeau, is now projected to double—an approach many call reckless with far-reaching effects.
Although pitched as support for businesses and workers hit by tariffs, the borrowing fails to fix the root problem: Carney’s inability to secure practical trade agreements. His plan to back lumber companies with $700 million in loan guarantees and another $500 million to help them find new markets is a fraction of the damage caused by American and Chinese tariffs.
Trump Keeps Ratcheting Up Tariffs
Critics, including Poilievre, say Carney’s focus on building domestic strength is only an admission that he has surrendered to pressure from the U.S. instead of defending Canada’s interests.
Carney’s once-stirring nationalistic campaign slogans now ring hollow. He pledged to “keep our tariffs on until the Americans show us respect,” but has since backed down, giving up measures like the Digital Services Tax to appease Washington, with little in return.
Even as Carney tries to claim Canada will only negotiate “on our terms,” President Trump keeps ratcheting up tariffs and has joked about making Canada a U.S. state. Carney’s efforts to find new partners in Europe and Asia move slowly, leaving Canada vulnerable to unpredictable American actions and an assertive China.
Under the current Liberal leadership, policies have failed to attract investment in Canada. Many investors, once confident in Canadian stability, have shifted their focus elsewhere because of the uncertainty surrounding Carney’s government and the complex international trade situation.
The promise of a stable economy that is independent from the United States seems out of reach, overshadowed by ballooning debt, climbing inflation, and a devastated canola sector.
Canadians now face an uncertain future. Many doubt Carney’s ability to protect the country’s independence and secure real gains. As Poilievre and the Conservative Party draw support by tapping into populist feelings, Carney’s minority government depends on smaller parties to remain in power.
His failure to resist pressure from both Trump and China has deepened Canada’s economic troubles and eroded public confidence in the Liberal Party’s leadership. For now, citizens are left to shoulder the consequences of a government that promised to deliver change but instead has brought more instability.
