{
  "id": 7493535,
  "title": "Trade war fuelling spike in city costs",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/15/trade-war-fuelling-spike-in-city-costs",
  "topic": "business",
  "section": "Business",
  "published": "2026-09-15T07:01:12.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Winnipeg Free Press",
    "slug": "winnipeg-free-press",
    "url": "https://www.winnipegfreepress.com/breakingnews/2026/09/15/trade-war-fuelling-spike-in-city-costs"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "A trade war between the U.S. and Canada could lead to millions of additional dollars in costs for the City of Winnipeg, according to city economists. The city could end up spending up to $4.7 million more on $913.7 million in construction projects by the end of 2027 due to tariffs and counter-tariffs. Paul Beckta, a senior city economist, warned that these financial concerns would only materialize if the city continues to use the same suppliers and tariff levels remain unchanged. Winnipeg's chief financial officer, Tracy Graham, said officials are taking steps to minimize the extra costs. The city is now requiring contractors to seek alternative sources of supplies if their current supplier is a U.S.-based company that would result in higher prices. New measures within Buy Manitoba/ Buy Canada policies could also give the city points specifically for local companies in its tendering practices, making them more likely to win contracts. Meanwhile, fuel prices have surged due to the war in Iran and other international pressures, leading to additional expenses for Winnipeg Transit. The transit service now expects to face around $4.8 million in extra 2026 costs. The bus service plans to cover the initial round of added expenses through salary and benefit savings and retained earnings. However, additional spending may be necessary if fuel prices do not decrease. Councilor Jeff Browaty, chairman of finance, cautioned that any reasonable cost buffer wouldn't suffice to cover such steep price increases.",
  "summary": "A trade war between the U.S. and Canada could cost the City of Winnipeg millions of dollars more than was anticipated during the budget process for this year’s expenditures and […]",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}