Trump and Carney Engage in Last-Minute Tariff Talks

Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney held last-minute talks with US President Donald Trump to avoid fresh tariffs on Canadian goods. The tariffs, set to take effect at midnight, target around 5.5 percent of Canada's exports to the United States, worth about $20 billion.

Oxford Economics estimates that while this poses a modest negative risk to Canada's economy, it will severely affect central Canada's manufacturing sector. Canadian negotiators have been in Washington pushing for a deal to avoid the tariffs and secure relief on Trump's sector-specific duties, which have battered Canada's auto, steel, lumber, and aluminum industries.

The US Trade Representative's office did not respond to queries about the negotiations. Former US commerce official Christopher Padilla expects that the Trump administration threatened new tariffs to try and win early concessions from Canada as the countries negotiate over renewing the US-Mexico-Canada free trade agreement (USMCA).