Trade deal could negatively impact Canadian automotive industry, according to Queen’s researchers.

The Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) will negatively impact the Canadian automotive industry, according to a new study co-authored by Queen’s researchers John Holmes and Jeffrey Carey who are affiliated with the Automotive Policy Research Centre (APRC) at McMaster University.

The researchers argue that the TPP will undermine the competitiveness of Canadian assembly operations as well as small and medium-sized auto parts plants.

“TPP will be a game changer for the global automotive industry,” says Dr. Holmes (Geography and Planning), an auto industry expert. “The proposed treaty will significantly affect decisions regarding what, where and how automotive products will be produced within the wider TPP region, with Canada getting the short end of the stick.”

The Devil is in the Details: The TPP’s Impact on the Canadian Automotive Industry highlights how a critical side deal in the TPP, negotiated between the United States and Japan but applicable to all TPP parties, further reduces how much of a vehicle or automotive part needs to be produced within the TPP region for it to get duty-free access under the agreement.

Read the full story in the Queen's Gazette.