Daily Detroit
Aug. 24, 2026
Jer Staes
The U.S.–Canada trade situation took a wild turn over the weekend. We thought we had an agreement, but now we’re suddenly facing a full-scale trade war with our closest neighbor.
Glenn Stevens Jr. from MichAuto joined me to break down what went wrong and what this uncertainty actually means on the ground for Michiganders and Michigan companies.
From auto supply chains, to materials, to local jobs, to healthcare workers, and tourism, Michigan has more to lose than most anywhere else in the United States as this may drag on.
Michigan residents have already been impacted by thousands of dollars since the disputes started in 2025, whether it’s in increased prices or decreased wages and profit-sharing.
We dig into why unraveling this more than century-long economic partnership makes little sense and why getting both sides back to the table. That yes, friends always have disagreements, but blowing everything up isn’t the thing to do.
“Our two countries are intertwined from a trade perspective, but Michigan and Ontario and other parts of Canada, but certainly Ontario are interdependent,” Stevens Jr. said. “Parts move back and forth daily from the auto industry, but agriculture, lumber, energy, fertilizer products, it’s all traded back and forth.”
Listen to the full interview.