New Brunswick, Newfoundland and Labrador sign agreement to knock down trade barriers

ST. JOHN’S — New Brunswick and Newfoundland and Labrador are the latest provinces to pledge to work together and knock down trade barriers as Canada faces economic threats from U.S. President Donald Trump.

The country’s two Liberal premiers signed a commitment in St. John’s, N.L., Thursday, saying their goal is to find ways to allow workers and goods certified in one province to be given the same clearance in the other.

“This is a time when the U.S. is trying to divide us, and so Canada is coming together like never before,” New Brunswick Premier Susan Holt told reporters. “If it’s good enough for Newfoundland, it’s good enough for New Brunswick, and you’re not going to have to get re-inspected or re-labeled or repackaged in order for goods to move between our provinces.”

Trump’s global trade war and calls to annex Canada have provinces scrambling to reroute exports away from the United States and build local markets instead.

The president slapped Canada with economywide tariffs last month after declaring a “national emergency” under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act linked to the flow of people and fentanyl across the United States’ northern border. He partially paused the levies a few days later for imports compliant with the Canada-U.S.-Mexico Agreement on trade, called CUSMA.

As a way to compensate for restricted access to the U.S. market, several jurisdictions, including Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island and Ontario, have entered into agreements to encourage more interprovincial flow of goods and workers.

Andrew Furey, Newfoundland and Labrador’s premier, said that Thursday’s agreement will allow officials in both provinces to start discussing changes “where they make sense.” Rules requiring Newfoundland and Labrador seafood processing plants to buy certain amounts of locally caught fish, for example, are not up for discussion, he said.

“There are ‘no-fly zones’ on both sides,” he told reporters.

Furey said he was willing to discuss similar agreements with other provinces. Holt, for her part, said she was particularly eager to strike an interprovincial trade deal with Quebec Premier François Legault.

When asked if the agreement would have come together without Trump’s threats, Furey said the provinces were already working together. Thursday’s agreement builds on a previous alliance that allows doctors to work anywhere in Atlantic Canada without needing licences for each province, he added.

“I hesitate to show any gratitude to President Trump for anything,” he quipped.

Newfoundland and Labrador is home to about 540,000 people; New Brunswick’s population stands at roughly 775,000 people.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published April 24, 2025.

The Canadian Press