If we consider all tariffs placed on Canadian imports into the United States since the initial wave in March 2025, we find steel and aluminum (50%), automotive (25%) and copper (50%) to be the industries most at risk, resulting in widespread declines in related stocks and making it high time to put our active investor hats on in search of compelling opportunities.
This content has been prepared in collaboration with Alcoa Corp., Champion Iron Ltd., Stellantis N.V. and Teck Resources Ltd., and is intended for informational purposes only.
A quick Google for top Canadian stocks in each industry quickly turned up dozens of names – sourced from Trading View, Investopedia, Mining Technology and Investing.com – freeing us up to dive into income statements and balance sheets for assurances, including proven management, growing revenue and strong profitability, in support of businesses likely to create shareholder value, even in the event of a prolonged trade war.
Alcoa
A convincing name to test with your due diligence is Alcoa, market capitalization US$8.02 billion, a global provider of bauxite, alumina and aluminum products with operations spread across Australia, Brazil, Spain and Canada, including three aluminum smelters in Quebec with combined production of nearly one million tons per year.
The company managed to post positive net income in each of the past five quarters ending Q2 2025, ending the latter with alumina production of 2.4 million metric tons and aluminum production of 572,000 tons, each in line with year-over-year figures, minimizing tariff losses by redirecting product to non-US customers.
With the price of aluminum rebounding in Q2 (see slide 15 of Alcoa’s Q2 investor presentation), long-term demand tailwinds in place through the end of the decade (slide 13) and US$1.5 billion in cash and cash-flowing geographically diversified operations to support growth initiatives, the company appears to be well equipped to absorb the US$90 million in unfavorable impacts because of US tariffs expected in Q3, equal to those incurred in Q2, as it taps its global client base to source more non-US deals to re-direct supply.
Alcoa stock (NYSE:AA) was down by as much as 32.12 per cent following the announcement of US tariffs on Canadian steel and aluminum imports on March 12, but has since recovered to a mere 4.33 per cent loss, maintaining a 149.49 per cent gain since 2020.
Champion Iron
Moving into the steel sector, I came across Champion Iron, market capitalization C$2.35 billion, which operates the Bloom Lake mining complex in Quebec, composed of an open-pit mine and two concentration plants that produce 66.2 per cent iron ore concentrate from one of the highest-purity resources globally.
Ongoing upgrades to 69 per cent purity in December 2025 position the company to add to its products’ premium relative to the Platts IODEX – a popular iron ore benchmark – as it continues to build upon its global customer track record spanning China, Japan, the Middle East, Europe, South Korea and India, as well as Canada, with no direct sales to the United States.
Champion Iron’s secondary asset, the Kamistiatusset mining properties only 21 kilometres to the southeast, are expected to deliver 9 million tons of iron per year grading above 67.5 per cent, and are currently under joint venture with Nippon Steel and Sojitz with eyes on a definitive feasibility study.
Champion’s global cachet has allowed it to achieve revenue growth in four out of the past five years, growing from C$1.281 billion in 2021 to C$1.6 billion in 2025, all while generating consistently positive annual net income in the hundreds of millions, whose variability reflects inflation, US tariffs and iron price volatility (see slide 10 of Champion’s Q4 2025 investor presentation).
Chief executive officer David Cataford expressed confidence is the company’s near-term future, stating in the Q4 F2025 news release that, “As global economies face uncertainties with rising trade tensions, our company benefits from robust financial liquidities and diversified global partners, enabling us to diligently advance our growth initiatives.”
Propelled by increased cash flow from purity upgrades at Bloom Lake, near-term development at Kami, as well as a portfolio of prospective exploration projects, investors should expect more upside from earnings and the drill bit to carry this Canadian-listed stock higher.
Champion Iron stock (TSX:CIA) last traded at C$4.54 and was down by as much as 23.75 per cent since US steel and aluminum tariffs first came to light in March. The loss currently stands at 0.87 per cent, with investors harboring a 20.04 per cent loss year-over-year and a 73.66 per cent gain since 2020.
Stellantis
Moving on to the auto sector, we have Stellantis, market capitalization US$26.53 billion, a global producer with more than 100 years in business and a portfolio of household names, including Chrysler, Dodge//SRT, Jeep, Ram, Alfa Romeo, FIAT and Maserati.
With operations in more than 30 countries and customers in more than 130 markets, Stellantis has reached efficiencies reserved for only the world’s most diversified companies, growing revenue from a pandemic low of €86.6 billion in 2020 to €189.5 billion in 2023, before slipping back to €156.8 billion in 2024 driven by lower volume, increased sales incentives and foreign exchange headwinds. Net income followed a parallel trajectory, rising from €29 million in 2020 to €18.5 billion in 2023, falling to €5.4 billion in 2024 as high inflation ate into demand.
Stellantis decided to suspend 2025 guidance on account of US tariffs, but is estimating a C$3.7 billion loss combined across Q1 and Q2, according to a CBC report, which will likely spook investors and send the stock (NYSE:STLA) tumbling further, compounding its more than 50 per cent loss year-over-year.
That said, the company’s long-tenured management team ended 2024 with US$34.1 billion in cash and equivalents, enough to buy itself time to restructure as necessary, and is actively leveraging a leadership position as the largest producer of US-assembled vehicles (58%), with over half of adjusted operating income stemming from outside of North America (2023-2024) – as per slide 13 of Stellantis’ Q1 presentation – to put itself on the path to growing profits once again.
While hindered by the current macroeconomic climate, Stellantis remains committed to its Dare Forward initiative, announced in 2022, to maximize shareholder value by transitioning into a sustainable mobility tech company, eyeing carbon neutrality by 2038, and benefits from a balance sheet and income statements robust enough to make meaningful progress and improve market sentiment.
Teck Resources
Wrapping things up with copper, we turn our attention to Teck Resources, market capitalization C$26.27 billion, a top 10 copper producer and the world’s largest zinc producer, delivering more than 440,000 tons and 850,000 tons in 2024, respectively. The company operates the Highland Valley mine in B.C., the largest copper mine in Canada, in addition to projects in Peru, Chile and the United States.
Teck delivered variable revenue over the past five years, posting C$8.9 billion in 2020, rising to C$17.3 billion in 2022 and falling to just over C$9 billion in 2024. Net income told a similar story, reaching a five-year high of C$3.3 billion in 2022 and falling to C$406 million in 2024, reflecting commodity price volatility, as well as the sale of the company’s steelmaking coal business in 2024 in a bid to reposition itself as a critical metals company.
Teck is on track to almost triple copper production from 296,000 tons in 2023 to about 800,000 tons by 2030 – according to slide 12 of its latest investor presentation – with copper EBITDA margins expected to grow from 33 per cent in 2023 to 53 per cent in 2025, supported by a zinc business putting up impressive gross profits before depreciation and amortization in Q4 2024 and Q1 2025, diligently increasing the operational ability to create value in strong and weak demand environments.
Management’s envisioned trajectory will only be facilitated by Teck’s minimal exposure to the US, having re-routed its zinc from the US to Asia to avoid earlier blanket tariffs across all Canadian imports.
Teck stock (TSX:TECK.A) has been flat since Trump announced the potential 50 per cent tariff on Canadian copper on July 8, but remains down by more than 17 per cent year-over-year, despite a profitable track record, reflected in a 210 per cent return since 2020, earning conviction in its plans for future growth.
Parting proviso
Even though US tariffs may result in short-term volatility, presenting you with attractive entry points for stocks active in affected industries, share prices will always reflect value creation after the noise has cleared, leaving the cold, hard numbers of balance sheets and income statements in their wake.
The longer a company has been growing profitably, the deeper the trust a management team deserves to grow your investment through the economic cycle, maneuvering through uncertainty towards greater efficiency and scale.
All this is to say, take care to differentiate between fun-money or taking a flyer, if it’s an itch you need to scratch – with a risk-adjusted percentage of your portfolio – and investing, where due diligence should be convincing enough to allow you to sleep well at night, no matter the temporary blips in the stock market’s proven history of life-enhancing returns.
Join the discussion: Find out what investors are saying about these tariff-resilient stocks on the Alcoa Corp., Champion Iron Ltd., Stellantis N.V. and Teck Resources Ltd. Bullboards, and check out the rest of Stockhouse’s stock forums and message boards.
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