Washington DC - President Donald Trump's administration is offering Canadian aluminum and steel companies significant tariff relief if they commit to moving production to the US.

The US on Thursday published a notice on the Federal Registry officially introducing a formal process by which Canadian companies can seek tariff relief if they prove their intent to move production.

"Car companies are coming from Canada," Trump said on Thursday. "They're coming from Mexico, Germany, Japan."

Trump's trade war with Canada has been in the spotlight this week as both countries gear up, along with Mexico, to renegotiate the US-Mexico-Canada Agreement.

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Part of the administration's policy is to coerce foreign companies, especially from Mexico and Canada, to move their production into the US and stimulate American job growth. As a result, the aluminum and steel sectors have been hit with particularly high levies.

"It's a very aggressive tactic by the United States," international trade lawyer William Pellerin told the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC).

"This really reinforces the approach that we've seen from the United States for a while now, which is simply: We win if you lose."

Thousands are being laid off by metal manufactures and automobile companies across Canada, as some businesses opt to move south of the border to avoid Trump's tariffs.

"Many of our clients are laying off employees, closing facilities," Pellerin said. "It is really painful to see these massive layoffs happen in Canada."

Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney on Wednesday hit back against Washington's aggressive trade practices, declaring that the US cannot dictate the terms of upcoming negotiations.

"It's not a case of the US dictating the terms… It's not a case of [one country] demanding and the other begging," Carney said in French. "It's a negotiation."