Detroit Regional Chamber and MichAuto join Michigan Smart Trade Alliance coalition seeking nonpartisan discussion about tariff and trade polices

DETROIT — The Detroit Regional Chamber, one of the longest-running and largest business organizations in the United States, and its statewide MichAuto program, have joined the bipartisan Michigan Smart Trade Alliance (MISTA) to support its call for nonpartisan, smart and stable trade policies that help grow businesses and keep prices low for families.

The Detroit Regional Chamber and MichAuto join MISTA’s growing roster of prominent business and policy groups representing regions across Michigan to call for Congress to support consistent and straightforward trade policies.

The Detroit Regional Chamber has served Southeast Michigan for more than 100 years and advocates for economic development and public policy that supports job creation and prosperity for companies that range from startups to Fortune 500s. For over a decade its MichAuto program has served as the only statewide voice for the entire automotive industry and is designed to promote, grow, and retain Michigan’s automotive leadership.

“Michigan is disproportionately vulnerable to fluctuating trade and tariff policy, particularly because our state sits along one of the busiest border crossings in North America and Canada is our largest trading partner,” said Sandy K. Baruah, president and CEO, for the Detroit Regional Chamber. “The businesses we represent are ready to grow, bring jobs, and create vibrant and stronger communities – but they need leadership and the space to discuss and advance consistent trade policy.”

The Detroit Regional Chamber and MichAuto join a growing list of MISTA coalition members, including the Michigan Chamber of Commerce, Michigan Retailers, the Midwest Independent Retailers Association, the Michigan Osteopathic Association, the Lansing Regional Chamber of Commerce, the Midland Business Alliance and the Northern Michigan Chamber Alliance. 

The Detroit Regional Chamber and MichAuto recently partnered with the Michigan Chamber of Commerce to co-host the Michigan-Ontario Economic Leadership Roundtable featuring Canadian Minister Caroline Mulroney, president of the Ontario Treasury Board for a candid conversation on cross-border trade, supply chains, and North American competitiveness.

“The Detroit Regional Chamber is a national influencer of economic policy, a voice for Michigan’s most important industries, and has one of the most respected advocacy shops in Lansing,” said John Sellek, a spokesman for the Michigan Smart Trade Alliance. “Few other business advocacy groups are better acquainted with Michigan’s vital trade relationship with Canada than the Detroit Regional Chamber, so we welcome them to the conversation.”

The Chamber, and its statewide MichAuto program, has been an outspoken advocate for the importance of extending and strengthening the USMCA trade agreement, particularly to the automotive, manufacturing, agricultural, and tourism industries and their supporting supply chains. Its December Detroiter magazine featured business and political leaders on both sides of the border touting the importance of the U.S. and Michigan trade relationship with Canada.

“Canada is not only our neighbor and friend, they are critical to our economy, past, present, and future,” said Glenn Stevens Jr., executive director of MichAuto, and the chief automotive and innovation officer for the Chamber. “Together, Michigan and Ontario built our automotive industry over the past 120 years, and for us to thrive – we need to continue to strengthen that relationship. It continues to benefit people and businesses on both sides of the border.”

MichAuto represents a sector that is crucial to Michigan’s economy, one that needs a predictable road map to protect jobs and plan future growth. The auto industry accounts for about 20% of Michigan jobs with a payroll of more than $80 billion and $348 billion in annual economic output, or about 27% of Michigan’s GDP.

MichAuto is currently conducting a statewide industry roadmap focused on the forces of change that are redefining the automotive and mobility industry, with input from automotive companies, elected officials, and other industry stakeholders across the state. It also recently published the 2025 State of Automobility Report, outlining the strengths, weaknesses, challenges and opportunities facing Michigan’s signature industry amid unprecedented change.

“The Detroit Regional Chamber and MichAuto are crucial voices for business in Michigan, and we are proud to have them join our coalition in calling for smart and stable trade policies,” said Mark Fisk, a spokesman for MISTA. “Manufacturers and business owners in Detroit and across Michigan need Congress to enact predictable trade policies that are good for families and our state’s economy.”