US President: Close to Signing Trade Deal with Canada

Washington, Nov 1 (KUNA) – U.S. President Donald Trump expressed optimism on Sunday about signing a “very good” trade deal with Canada soon, noting that he had recently held constructive phone conversations with Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney on the matter. Trump told reporters, “We now have a clear vision of a very good deal with Canada, and it will be a great deal for both sides. We’ve been losing money in our dealings with Canada for a very long time, and now we are very close to reaching a fair agreement with them.” He added that he had held several phone calls with the Canadian prime minister in recent days with the aim of reaching a bilateral agreement, noting that if concluded, the deal would be “great” for American farmers, the United States, and Canada as well. Trump affirmed that the agreement would ensure that American farmers would not pay any tariffs on their goods exported to Canada. The United States had imposed a 50 percent tariff on Canadian imports in late August, covering $20 billion worth of Canadian goods, following the collapse of trade talks between the two countries. In response, Canada retaliated with counter-tariffs ranging from 15 to 50 percent on $20 billion worth of U.S. products, escalating the trade war between the two nations. (End) A.M.M. / F.A.S.