By David Shepardson and Allison Lampert
WASHINGTON/MONTREAL, Oct 20 (Reuters) – President Donald Trump said late Monday he does not plan to hurt Canadian jet maker Bombardier more than a month after he threatened to bar them from the US market.
Trump spoke in Wichita, Kansas, where Bombardier employs 1,500 workers. Trump’s threats in September prompted calls to the White House from Kansas lawmakers including Republican Senator Roger Marshall, who is facing a tough re-election bid.
“I’m going to be helping a certain air company get themselves straightened away… I’ll be helping them because I always viewed them as a Canadian company,” Trump said. “But now I find out they have a presence here, and we’re not hurting them if they’re in Kansas. So we’ll take care of those people and the jobs.”
Bombardier’s shares rose 2.1% Tuesday after Trump’s comments. The White House and Bombardier did not immediately comment.
Bombardier has 3,500 jobs in the U.S., more than 40% of which are in Wichita, Kansas. Last week, Bombardier said it was investing another $50 million in its Wichita operations as part of its long-term growth plans in the state. Kansas is home to Bombardier Group’s US headquarters and Bombardier Defense.
Bombardier has 3,500 employees in the United States and plans to open a facility in Fort Wayne, Indiana.
Last month, the Trump administration banned a broad swath of Canadian alcoholic beverages, motorcycles and dairy products from import effective Sept. 29 but took no action against Bombardier.
The action came after Canada’s own retaliatory tariffs on U.S. goods took effect in early September which were prompted after Washington imposed tariffs on some $20 billion of Canadian goods in August, after several rounds of negotiations collapsed.
Reuters reported last month it was not immediately clear how Trump could bar Bombardier private jets from being delivered to American customers since they have been approved by the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration.
Threats by Trump in February to decertify Bombardier aircraft over a certification spat involving US rival Gulfstream Aerospace never materialized, with regulator Transport Canada eventually approving the American-made jets.
(Reporting by David Shepardson; Editing by Chizu Nomiyama )
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