Stellantis moves Jeep production to Illinois, sparking Canada-US tensions

TORONTO (AP) — The leader of Canada’s most populous province called for economic retaliation against the United States after automaker Stellantis announced it was moving planned production of its Jeep Compass from Canada to the United States.

Ontario Premier Doug Ford blamed U.S. President Donald Trump for the company’s decision. this week to move production of the SUV from Brampton, Ontario, to Illinois as part of a $13 billion investment plan to expand its U.S. manufacturing capacity.

These comments come as Canada negotiates a reduction in customs tariffs. Trump urged the big three American automakers to relocate their production to the United States.

“This guy, President Trump, is a real piece of work,” Ford said. “I’m tired of turning around. We have to fight back.”

Ford said Canada must retaliate with tariffs if Prime Minister Mark Carney fails to reach a trade deal with Trump.

Dominic LeBlanc, the minister responsible for Canada-US trade, is in Washington this week to discuss reducing tariffs on certain sectors. Carney left Washington last week without agreement.

Carney said the decision the fourth largest automobile manufacturer in the world was a direct result of the tariffs and his government would work with Stellantis to create new opportunities in the Brampton region. Carney added that Ottawa expects Stellantis to honor its commitment to Brampton workers. The federal government threatened to sue the company.

Federal Industry Minister Mélanie Joly said the production shift was “unacceptable” and warned that Stellantis was committed to Canadian production in exchange for substantial financial support.

“Anything that fails to respect this commitment will be considered a breach of the terms of our agreements,” Joly wrote in a letter to the company’s CEO.

Fear has spread in Ontario on what will happen to the Canadian auto sector. Automotive is Canada’s second-largest export and Carney noted the sector directly employs 125,000 Canadians and nearly 500,000 more in related industries.

“Stellantis is bowing to the Trump administration with this promise of massive investment in the United States,” Brampton Mayor Patrick Brown told the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation.

“If this intimidation tactic works with Stellantis, I expect it to be replicated at every other automaker in Canada and, frankly, other industries that the United States is interested in.”

Workers at the Stellantis assembly plant in Brampton were greeted Wednesday by a robocall from their employer telling them the work they were waiting for would not return. The company closed the plant in 2023 and laid off its roughly 3,000 workers as it retooled the facility.

Stellantis announced it would reopen its Belvidere, Illinois, assembly plant to increase Jeep production in the United States, creating thousands of new jobs there.

Vito Beato, president of Unifor Local 1285, which represents workers at the Brampton plant, said the news came as a surprise because Stellantis had previously said it was committed to producing its Jeep Compass in Brampton.

Stellantis said it continues to invest in Canada, including adding a third shift at the Windsor, Ont., assembly plant, and is in talks with the government about the future of the Brampton plant.

Carney won the country’s election earlier this year, fueled by threats of annexation and Trump’s trade war, but has tried to improve relations ahead of a review of the free trade agreement next year. More than 75% of Canadian exports go to the United States and Canada recently dropped many of its retaliatory tariffs to match U.S. tariff exemptions on goods covered by the United States-Mexico-Canada trade agreement.

Ford said Canada should start responding to Trump’s tariffs with its own tough measures.

“That’s the only thing this person understands,” Ford said of Trump. Ford is scheduled to meet with Carney this week.