Canada's finance minister convened a closed-door meeting of chief economists, including representatives from the country's major banks, in Toronto to assess fallout if trade talks with the U.S. break down. Participants said some forecasts were revised down and warned new U.S. tariffs on hundreds of Canadian goods could disproportionately hit SMEs, but discussion of recession risk was limited. The prevailing view was that the Canadian economy is sufficiently resilient to absorb the tariffs, with

Canada's finance minister convened a closed-door meeting of chief economists, including representatives from the country's major banks, in Toronto to assess fallout if trade talks with the U.S. break down. Participants said some forecasts were revised down and warned new U.S. tariffs on hundreds of Canadian goods could disproportionately hit SMEs, but discussion of recession risk was limited. The prevailing view was that the Canadian economy is sufficiently resilient to absorb the tariffs, with damage likely concentrated in the targeted sectors—an assessment that may increase Prime Minister Carney's willingness to walk away from negotiations.