US tariffs on Canadian newsprint would have likely resulted in domestic mills also charging more, without boosting production, the country’s National Newspaper Association says.
Although the proposed 25 per cent tariffs were “paused” for 30 days yesterday, publishers have had occasion to ponder likely impacts, should they be resumed.
Nor is the issue of survival of a free press a concern to which the new president has shown himself to be sympathetic.
NNA thanked members who weighed in over the weekend in response to an action alert, putting members of Congress on notice about the harmful impact of newsprint tariffs, which were to have affected imports from Canada and Mexico.
There were fears American mills would increase prices but not production in response.
NNA said the action was different to that in 2018 in response to a complaint over Canadian newsprint prices, when domestic mills feared undercutting and tariffs of up to 32 per cent were introduced. The group had written to commerce committee chairmen Brett Guthrie and Ted Cruz highlighting the impact of tariffs on Canadian newsprint and the likelihood that they will lead to permanent increases in prices, and asking them to request an exemption for newsprint
Among impacts would be job losses, especially from the “existential burden” on community newspapers. Publishers are already facing punitive postage increases and higher printing costs from other trade actions leading many to exit the business, depriving small communities of access to local news.
Pictured: Kruger’s Corner Brook mill in Newfoundland, Canada