Cleveland-Cliffs CEO ignites political firestorm, blaming Ottawa as Stelco layoffs escalate trade tensions

Cleveland-Cliffs CEO Lourenco Goncalves has sparked a fresh political firestorm, praising former US President Donald Trump and lambasting Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney and his government's trade policies amidst significant layoffs at Stelco, its Canadian subsidiary. This dramatic escalation comes as Stelco announced plans to idle its cold-rolled and coated steel operations in Hamilton, Ontario, leading to up to 500 job losses, despite Cleveland-Cliffs reporting its strongest quarterly earnings in three years. Goncalves directly blamed 'woefully inadequate' Canadian trade protections and a flood of cheap imports for the job cuts, while crediting Trump's tariffs for boosting Cliffs' U.S. performance. The friction highlights the deepening Canada-U.S. trade war, ignited when Trump imposed steep 50% tariffs on Canadian steel in June 2025, prompting Canada's retaliatory measures. Stelco president Paul Simon noted that Canadian exports of key steel products to the U.S. plummeted 58% in Q2 2026, while foreign imports now capture 45% of Canada's domestic market for these goods. Prime Minister Carney has slammed Cliffs' move as a 'betrayal' of Canadian workers, threatening legal action over employment commitments made during the 2024 acquisition of Stelco, emphasizing that government financial aid isn't the solution, but market access and protection are. As the Canadian government extends its steel tariff-rate quotas to June 2027 in an attempt to curb cheap imports, all eyes are on whether Ottawa will heed Goncalves' call for even tougher restrictions, particularly on galvanized steel, to save Canadian jobs. The ongoing legal threats from Carney and the intensifying rhetoric from both sides suggest a prolonged dispute, forcing Canadian steelworkers and the broader industry to navigate an increasingly volatile international trade landscape. The situation underscores the complex interplay between national industrial policy, global trade dynamics, and the immediate human cost of economic conflict.