Quebec premier in Beauce to talk about the impact of tariffs

Quebec Premier Francois Legault visits an architectural woodworking plant in Saint-Georges, Quebec on Thursday, February 6, 2025. Stephane Lesage, director of operations at Beaubois, centre, accompanies Legault. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Jacques Boissinot (Jacques Boissinot/The Canadian Press)

Quebec Premier François Legault was briefed at length on Thursday on the difficulties that entrepreneurs exporting to the United States could face.

He visited Beaubois, in Saint-Georges, a vast 144,000-foot cabinet factory that manufactures quality products for major customers, including courthouses and Ford headquarters.

With the Trump administration threatening to impose tariffs on March 4, Beaubois operations manager Stéphane Lesage warned Legault that Canada could retaliate.

The company director pointed out that part of his raw material, oak, comes from the United States, so he would be doubly hit by the imposition of customs duties.

Legault asked him if it would be possible to increase his sales in Canada or Europe, but it would be very complex to deliver Beaubois custom-made products to Europe, according to Lesage.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published in French on Feb. 6, 2025.