Kitchener, Cambridge, Waterloo, Guelph and Brantford ranked among most vulnerable to U.S. tariffs

An aerial image of Waterloo.

A business advocacy group believes Waterloo, Kitchener, Cambridge, Guelph and Brantford could be hit particularly hard by U.S. tariffs.

The Canadian Chamber of Commerce released a report detailing which Canadian cities they believe could be most vulnerable to protectionist trade policies from U.S. President Donald Trump.

Cities were ranked based on how many goods they export to the U.S. as their key export market.

In a ranking of the 41 most vulnerable cities, Kitchener-Cambridge-Waterloo came in at number four, Brantford was listed as number five, and Guelph was sixth. Hamilton also ranked highly at number eight.

“Our modelling estimates that automotive and parts manufacturing would be the second most negatively impacted sector by U.S. tariffs. Therefore, it’s no surprise to see several cities in Southwestern Ontario occupying the 3rd to 6th spots on the list,” the report reads.

“Kitchener-Cambridge-Waterloo, Brantford and Guelph are located further east on Highway 401 and specialize in producing auto parts, other advanced manufacturing and machinery and equipment, as well as agricultural exports. For example, Guelph is home to Linamar’s headquarters (Canada’s second largest auto parts maker) as well as Sleeman Breweries,” the report continued.

The report said Kitchener-Cambridge-Waterloo is home to 1,051 exporters to the U.S.