DID Press: Intensive trade negotiations between the United States and Canada ended without an agreement, as new 50% U.S. tariffs on selected Canadian goods took effect on Saturday, prompting Prime Minister Mark Carney to pledge dollar-for-dollar retaliation.
The tariffs are expected to affect around $20 billion worth of Canadian exports to the United States. Carney said Canada would respond with matching measures to protect Canadian workers and businesses.
U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer said Canada had declined to finalize a trade agreement based on terms reportedly reached earlier in the week. He said Washington had offered significant tariff reductions on Canadian steel, aluminum, automobiles and lumber, but Ottawa continued with retaliatory measures.
Carney, however, described last-minute changes to the U.S. proposal as “unfair and uneconomic,” saying they had raised questions about the reliability of any potential agreement.
The latest standoff follows several rounds of negotiations between officials from the two countries, including a three-hour meeting on Thursday that failed to break the deadlock.
The escalation risks further disrupting trade between the two closely integrated North American economies and could increase costs for businesses and consumers on both sides of the border.