(AFP) – More than 85 percent of trade between the United States and Canada remains tariff free, Prime Minister Mark Carney said Tuesday, days after President Donald Trump hiked levies on some Canadian goods. Carney has said he was disappointed by Trump’s decision last week to raise tariffs on isolated Canadian imports from 25 percent to 35 percent — which took effect August 1.
But the Canadian leader stressed the importance of Trump’s decision to preserve exemptions for all goods compliant with the United States-Mexico-Canada (USMCA) agreement, which Trump signed — and praised — in his first term. Speaking in the west coast province of British Columbia, Carney said Canada currently faces one of the lowest average US tariff rates of any country. “Over 85% of Canada-US trade continues to be tariff-free in both directions,” he said.
Trump justified his latest Canada tariffs on grounds that the US northern neighbor had not done enough to limit the cross-border flow of fentanyl, a drug fueling a major US opioid crisis. Carney noted that fentanyl entering the United States from Canada was “a rounding error” compared to other sources. According to US data, fentanyl seized at the northern border accounted for less than 0.1 percent of all seizures between 2022 and 2024.
Carney told reporters he had not spoken to Trump since last week’s tariff announcement. “We’ll speak when it makes sense,” he said, voicing hope negotiators could still move towards a comprehensive bilateral deal. Carney’s comments, made as he unveiled new support for a softwood lumber industry at the center of US-Canada trade tensions, came as the national statistics agency released its June trade figures. Compared to June 2024, Canadian exports to the United States were down 12.5 percent, Statistics Canada said.
Trump’s protectionism is having an impact across the Canadian economy, but the sectors targeted by global US tariffs — notably auto, steel and aluminum — have caused the most damage. “Major Canadian industries are being severely impacted by US (policies),” Carney said. “While we’ll continue to work with the United States on the many mutually beneficial opportunities that we share…it is clear that we cannot count, or fully rely, on what has been our most valued trading relationship.”
© 2024 AFP
