(LEX 18) — Sales of American spirits in Canada have dropped by 66% following retaliatory measures against US tariffs.
The dramatic decline occurred between March 5 and the end of April, according to Spirits Canada, a Canadian liquor trade group.
According to the group, the impact is even more severe in Ontario, Canada's largest market for American spirits, where sales plunged by 80%.
The group, which represents Canadian manufacturers and marketers of distilled spirits, said total spirits sales in Canada fell 12.8% during the same period.
"The North American spirits sector is highly interconnected, and the immediate and continued removal of all U.S. spirits products from Canadian shelves is deeply problematic for spirits producers on both sides of the border," said Cal Bricker, president and CEO of Spirits Canada.
Earlier this month, U.S. Senator Rand Paul expressed strong concerns about the impact on Kentucky's bourbon industry.
"Very concerned about it. The bourbon industry in Kentucky is a big industry for us now. People come from all around the world. We also sell it around the world. That's why I'm not for having a trade war with Canada. I'm not for having a trade war with Europe because one of the first things they retaliate on is something that's very American and very Kentucky and it's bourbon," Paul said.
