Honda Canada said on Tuesday that she was not planning to change her Canadian car production, refuting a press article that she planned to relocate part of her production in the United States.
The Japanese financial newspaper Nikkei said, earlier Tuesday, Honda was planning to relocate enough Canadian production of CR-V and Civic in the United States to be able to respond to 90 % of its American sales with vehicles produced in this country, against around 70 % currently.
Honda Canada is constantly studying various emergency plans, but intends to maintain the current Canadian production levels, said her spokesperson Ken Chiu.
“We can confirm that our Canadian manufacturing plant in Alliston, Ontario, will work for its maximum capacity for the foreseeable future and no change is envisaged at the moment.”
Honda’s comments confirm the statements of government officials earlier this day: no change is planned for Honda’s activities, which employ around 4,200 people and produced around 375,000 CR-V and Civic in 2023.
The company also produces the same models in the United States. The article of Nikkei Indicates that the company plans to hire more workers and add teams to its American activities. Honda said he could not precisely comment on the content of the article.
Honda indicated that its flexible manufacturing method allows it to quickly adapt to the different market conditions, in particular by adapting production to specific models manufactured in each factory, intended for different regions and potentially for new markets, according to customer demand.
“Canadian production will remain at full capacity thanks to national sales, which increased 9 % in the first quarter of this year,” said Chiu.
The government denies
Tuesday morning, the Federal minister of Industry, Anita Anand, refuted this assertion in a publication on social networks and qualified information as Nikkei of “unconfirmed rumors”. “I am in close contact with the company,” wrote the federal minister on X. Honda confirmed to me that no decision of this kind has been taken or envisaged at the moment. »»
Mme Anand said that she would meet the CEO of Honda Canada later during the day to get more details. The company has not yet responded to requests for comments.
Ontario Prime Minister Doug Ford said Honda Canada’s president earlier told him that the information was inaccurate.
Ford and his office say Honda told them that the company wanted to increase its production in the United States, but not to the detriment of Canadian production.
The Honda factory in Alliston, Ontario, has around 4,200 employees and produced around 375,000 vehicles in Canada in 2023.
The Doug Ford office said Honda assured the province that the Canadian factory continues to operate on its maximum capacity and that no impact on jobs is to be expected.
The chefs react
Prime Minister Mark Carney reacted to rumors around Honda during a campaign stop in Saint-Eustache, in the Laurentians.
“The uncertainty that is created by the American tariff war is very difficult for businesses. […] In these circumstances, it is necessary to act, with strength and determination. »»
-Carney mentioned the announcement made by the Minister of Finance, François-Philippe Champagne, earlier in the morning to support companies affected by the trade war.
In order to alleviate the impact on the Canadian automotive sector, the federal government announced on Tuesday that producers who maintain their production levels in Canada could import a number of vehicles assembled in the United States in Canada without customs. The Prime Minister said that corporate discounts could go up to 100 % of Canadian retaliatory rights.
This decision arises while Mazda has confirmed the cessation of the production of CX-50 vehicles intended in Canada in its Alabama factory because they are subject to Canadian retaliatory rights.
“Incitatives are very strong to keep the production and jobs here,” said Carney, before adding: “But that said, Trump attacks our automotive industry. »»
The liberal chief also recalled the importance of renegotiating the free trade agreement with the United States.
On April 3, the United States imposed customs duties of 25 % on all imported vehicles, including those produced in Canada, despite the free trade agreement, which considerably increased costs for all importers.
Carney said that he doesn’t think that Trump administration takes into account the degree of integration of industry and that it will probably have to make the price exemption, currently temporary, on automotive parts from Canada permanent.
Conservative chief Pierre Hairy, passing through Montreal, condemned an attack by Donald Trump who is unjustly targeting Canada, while saying that Canadian countermeasures should be maintained. He argued that the Canadian economy had to be reinforced by eliminating TPS in particular on “cars made here in Canada to encourage people to buy Canadian cars”.
“You have to control what you can control,” insisted Mr. Hairyvre.
Speaking in front of a Montreal hospital, NPD chief Jagmeet Singh, said Canada should prevent car manufacturers like Honda from removing from Canada from public money infrastructure.
“If it happens, it will damage our automotive sector for a long time” and “we have to think of all the possible tools to protect jobs and keep our factories”. For example, “said Singh,” If you want to sell cars in our country, you must have jobs in our country. This is a measure that can be put in place. »»
Singh added that with a growing population, Canada is an attractive market for car manufacturers.
Also in the Quebec metropolis, the Blocker chief, Yves-François Blanchet, underlined the need to accelerate, after the election, the implementation of a “negotiation process with Quebec and each of the 13 Canadian economies”, so that companies that may plan to relocate to the south of the border “await the few months or the year that it will take before having a vision of the future economy”.
Last year, Honda announced a $ 15 billion commitment to its Canadian facilities to create an electric vehicle supply chain in Ontario. This project, supported by public funding up to 5 billion, includes the construction of a battery plant for electric vehicles alongside its current Alliston factory.
When motor vehicles on motor vehicles entered into force on April 3, Honda Canada spokesperson Ken Chiu said in a statement that the company was trying to “understand the impact” of these rights and that it would adopt “a measured and thoughtful approach to actively tackle the immediate and future effects, thus ensuring our continuous success in Canada”.
With information from Allison Jones, Liam Casey, Kyle Duggan, Nick Murray and David Baxter
