The Crossing Report

Border brief,

Ottawa presses for tariff relief after midterms; Flying Trucks ends in 14 days

Foreign Minister Anita Anand says Canada will push to ease tariffs on autos, steel, aluminum and lumber after the U.S. midterms. CBP ends the Flying Trucks process on Nov. 24. Windsor Assembly stays idle this week.

At the border

Our live crossing feed could not be reached from our newsroom tools this morning, so we have no wait reading for Tuesday, Nov. 10. Check live wait times and the Niagara board before dispatching. Our news search turned up no reported closures at the Ambassador, Gordie Howe or Blue Water bridges, the Buffalo–Niagara crossings or the Soo, but that is not a live check.

Trade is the story to watch. Foreign Affairs Minister Anita Anand told Bloomberg on Nov. 10 that Canada will try to ease trade friction now that U.S. voters have delivered a midterm rebuke. She named lumber, steel, aluminum and autos as the hardest-hit sectors and said Ottawa hopes for "progress on the trade front." She gave no timeline.

Relief is not automatic. The Canadian Press reported Nov. 4 that the president keeps the executive powers behind the tariffs, whatever happens in Congress. Last month the White House exempted some Canadian forestry products and farm equipment from its 50% levies, and on Nov. 3 the president told Fox News a deal was close. No terms are public.

Analysis: nothing changes at the booth today. Keep quoting on current tariff rates. Auto parts shippers on the Detroit–Windsor run gain the most from any deal, since parts can cross the river several times before a vehicle is finished.

Windsor Assembly is idle again this week, the week of Nov. 9, according to CTV Windsor and Windsor News Today. A Unifor spokesperson said Stellantis cited tariffs and volume. We found no notice yet on the week of Nov. 16.

Diesel

The newest EIA figures we could verify are from the Nov. 3 release: the Midwest averaged $6.402 a gallon, down 8 cents, and the U.S. average was $6.292, down 6 cents. Monday's update (for Nov. 9) did not load in our tools, and we could not check Ontario's weekly survey or the exchange rate, so we are not quoting a Windsor price or a cross-border gap today. See the diesel page for the latest numbers.

What we're watching

  • Flying Trucks. CBP stops accepting air manifests for cargo that arrives by truck on Nov. 24, 14 days away. Carriers must file truck manifests that match the real mode of transport. CBP says non-compliance may bring delays or penalties. Express and forwarder freight is most exposed.
  • Windsor Assembly. Watch for word on the week of Nov. 16. Unifor members voted 97.3% for a strike mandate in October, but the union said then a strike was not imminent.
  • Trade talks. Analysis: watch for a ministerial meeting date or published terms. Until then, treat deal talk as talk.

Sources

Trade: Bloomberg via Business Standard, Nov. 10; Canadian Press via CP24, Nov. 4. Plant: CTV Windsor; Windsor News Today. Diesel: FleetOwner, EIA data released Nov. 3. Customs: CBP CSMS 69657207.