Canada: Trade Agreement with the US 'Very Close'

A senior Canadian official said on Thursday that his country and the United States are “very close” to reaching a trade deal that would help ease tariffs and anti-dumping duties in place for months, but he clarified that more work remains to be done.

Dominic LeBlanc, the minister responsible for trade with the United States, made the comments after meeting with U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer in Washington.

Both sides are trying to reach an agreement before a deadline set by U.S. President Donald Trump, who threatened to impose new tariffs of 50 percent on Canadian goods worth approximately $20 billion at 12:01 a.m. Eastern Time (04:01 GMT) on Saturday.

Reaching a deal could mark a thaw in the strained relations between the two allied countries and major trading partners over the past two years, and would pave the way for broader negotiations on renewing the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA).

A source expects the proposed deal to reduce the base tariffs on vehicles manufactured in Canada from 25 percent to 15 percent, and cut tariffs on Canadian steel and aluminum by half to 25 percent.

Trump had initially set Wednesday as the deadline for the tariffs to take effect, before granting both sides an additional three-day extension to complete negotiations, expressing hope that a deal would be reached.

Unlike several previous tariffs imposed by Trump, the new duties would apply even to products eligible for preferential treatment under the USMCA, which had shielded a significant portion of Canadian trade from tariffs.

Trump said on Wednesday that Washington would offer some concessions on tariffs, noting that the agreement would also lead to the removal of Canadian tariffs on U.S. goods.

Some of Canada’s ten provincial premiers indicated that Prime Minister Mark Carney had urged them to lift the ban on U.S. alcohol sales, a point of irritation for Washington, if Canada could secure a deal with the United States.