The head of Canada's business development corporation, Michael Denham, was in Sudbury Monday talking to small and medium-sized business owners.

He was offering tips on how they can withstand American tariffs on the steel and aluminum industries.

With 56,000 small business clients, including 500 in Sudbury, the Business Development Bank of Canada has plenty of skin in the game.

Despite a trade dispute with no end in sight, the bank's Chief Executive Officer says there's no need to panic yet.

"I think there is still a hope that, as I said, common sense will prevail." said Denham.

He admits the future could be bleak if the tariffs stay in place, but right now, things don't look too bad, especially in the north east.

"More mining projects are coming online and our clients are involved. So, things seem quite healthy right now in this part of Ontario." said Denham.

Still the BDC is preparing for the worst, setting aside $800-million over the next two years for clients affected by the dispute.

The Greater Sudbury Chamber of Commerce isn't yet panicking either, as local businesses look for creative ways to avoid the tariffs.

Bryan Welsh is the 2nd vice chair of the Greater Sudbury Chamber of Commerce.

"Companies right now are looking to diversify, look around, trying to look at domestic partners for supply chains, or maybe even looking at different countries to deal with." said Welsh.

He also says, right now, the tariffs aren't having a broad impact, but that would change if they stay in place.

"There's layoffs. Consumer confidence will go down. And then people stop buying. And, if you have people stop buying, the broader economy is going to be affected. It doesn't matter who you are." said Welsh.

And that's the real concern, not what is happening, but what could happen if this trade spat becomes a full-blown trade war.

The head of BDC says for most small businesses there's not much to do right now.

"Just stay focused. Stay focused on productivity. Stay focused on your investment plan. Stay focused on hiring the best people you can. And just make sure that your business keeps growing." said Denham.

And he says to do your best to stay out of the cross-border crossfire