The National Post reports in its Saturday, Aug. 23, edition that Prime Minister Mark Carney on Friday announced that Canada will remove retaliatory tariffs on U.S. goods under the existing trade agreement, excluding those on steel, aluminum and autos. The Post's Christopher Nardi writes that the Canadian Federation of Independent Business said Friday it welcomes the decision to drop some retaliatory tariffs on U.S. goods. The CFIB called it "a step in the right direction." The CFIB said support from small companies has been falling since February. Mr. Carney's pivot represents a significant shift from his earlier support for dollar-for-dollar tariffs during the Liberal leadership campaign. The announcement likely relieves business groups and economists who believe ex-prime minister Justin Trudeau's countertariffs were inflationary during a fragile economy. In June Bank of Canada Governor Tiff Macklem said that countertariffs "make U.S. imports more expensive and put upward pressure on inflation." A recent Leger-Postmedia poll found that 45 per cent of Canadians support imposing counter-tariffs on new U.S. border levies, despite the risk of retaliation from the Trump administration.