China Sets Steep Duties on Canadian Canola Imports, Opens New Probe

Udumbara Udumbara
Aug 13, 2025 - 09:52 Updated: Aug 13, 2025 - 00:40
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China Sets Steep Duties on Canadian Canola Imports, Opens New Probe
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China announced on Aug. 12 that it would impose tariffs on canola and rubber products imported from Canada, escalating trade tensions between Beijing and Ottawa.

China will implement a 26.2 percent duty on halogenated butyl rubber imported from Arlanxeo Canada, and a 40.5 percent duty will be levied on the same products from other Canadian companies, according to a statement from the Chinese Ministry of Commerce.

The tariffs, effective on Aug. 14, came a year after Beijing initiated a probe of commodity imports from Canada, Japan, and India.

The commerce ministry said on Aug. 12 that Japanese exporters of halogenated butyl rubber would incur a levy of up to 30.1 percent, while Indian producers will be exempt from new tariffs.

Separately, the ministry said it has decided to impose duties as high as 75.8 percent on canola, also known as rapeseed, shipped from Canada, which will also take effect on Aug. 14. Previously, China had imposed 100 percent tariffs on canola oil, oil cakes, and pea imports, and 25 percent on aquatic and pork products in March.
The ministry’s latest update relates to an announced probe launched in September 2024, days after Canada sharply increased tariffs on Chinese electric vehicles, steel, and aluminum products following the lead of the United States.

Beijing said in a statement that China’s domestic rapeseed industry had suffered substantial damage and that there was a causal relationship between dumping and material injury.

China relies heavily on Canada for canola. Canada is a leading global producer of the oilseed.

In 2024, China’s imports of rapeseed reached 6.39 million tons, nearly all of it shipped from Canada, China’s customs data show.

Separately, Beijing announced an anti-dumping investigation into imports of Canadian pea starch, according to a statement on the commerce ministry’s website.

The Chinese regime’s probe will cover almost all shipments of pea starch from January 2024 to the end of December 2024, with a longer period for industrial damages going back to January 2021.

The investigation would likely last until Aug. 12 next year, but may be extended by a further six months under “special circumstances,” it added.

Beijing’s announcement came weeks after Canada announced new measures aimed at bolstering its domestic steel industry against a flood of cheap products from China.

According to the plan unveiled by Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney, Ottawa will charge 25 percent tariffs on steel imports from all countries, with the exception of the United States, if the steel was melted and poured in China.
Carney said at the time that the new measures would ensure Canadian steel producers are “more competitive by protecting them against trade diversion resulting from a fast-changing global environment for steel, creating more resilient supply chains, and unlocking new private capital in Canadian production.”
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