{"id":47009,"date":"2025-08-05T12:34:10","date_gmt":"2025-08-05T12:34:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/47009\/"},"modified":"2025-08-05T12:34:10","modified_gmt":"2025-08-05T12:34:10","slug":"business-brief-what-does-trump-want-from-canada","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/47009\/","title":{"rendered":"Business Brief: What does Trump want from Canada?"},"content":{"rendered":"

Good morning. Welcome back from the long weekend, did you have a chance to get out and about<\/a>? We\u2019re checking in with where things stand for Canada after the United States imposed a new, higher tariff. Some words on the matter from columnist Tony Keller are in focus today, plus an idea to innovate airport security screening. On y va: <\/p>\n

Up firstIn the news<\/p>\n

Trade: The European Union will suspend<\/a> its two packages of countermeasures to U.S. tariffs for six months <\/p>\n

Stocks: Gold and Trump\u2019s chaos were key to the TSX\u2019s stellar performance<\/a> this year<\/p>\n

Dairy: Unpacking U.S., New Zealand and Australia\u2019s claims that Canada is dumping dairy proteins<\/a> into international markets <\/p>\n

Defence: A key part of Ottawa\u2019s defence procurement strategy is plagued by inefficiencies<\/a>, contractors say <\/p>\n

What else you missedOpen this photo in gallery:<\/a><\/p>\n

U.S. President Donald Trump meets with Prime Minister Mark Carney in the Oval Office at the White House on May 6.Leah Millis\/Reuters<\/p>\n

In focusCanada\u2019s ace in the hole has been USMCA. That could change.<\/p>\n

The following is an excerpt from Tony Keller\u2019s most recent column: What does Donald Trump want from Canada? We are about to find out<\/a> <\/p>\n

President Donald Trump has already delivered the biggest change to the global economic order since the fall of the Berlin Wall, and there is more to come. That\u2019s the context in which Canada is trying to negotiate with Washington.<\/p>\n

Prime Minister Mark Carney<\/a> appears to be attempting to preserve as much as possible of the free trade relationship with the U.S., while laying the groundwork for a future in which Canada has no choice but to trade less with the U.S.<\/p>\n

The Trump administration\u2019s goal is to force the rest of the world to sell less to the U.S., which it believes will lead to far more domestic U.S. production. In accepting a 15-per-cent U.S. tariff, Japan, South Korea and the EU all effectively agreed to this. Britain did likewise, accepting a 10-per-cent tariff.<\/p>\n

What ultimate level of import duties Trump hopes to impose on Canada, covering what basket of goods, remains unclear.<\/p>\n

However, Carney has signalled that any deal with the U.S. could include a baseline tariff<\/a>, as Japan, South Korea and the EU agreed to. He also implied that Canada might have to offer commitments to buy U.S. goods or make investments in the U.S.<\/a>, as those other trading partners did, though the terms of their promises are vague and possibly meaningless.<\/p>\n

Canada\u2019s ace in the hole has been the United States-Mexico-Canada agreement. The 35-per-cent tariff that Trump slapped on Canada on Thursday night \u2013 up from the 25-per-cent rate imposed earlier this year \u2013 only applies to goods that are not USMCA-compliant. The Bank of Canada<\/a> last week estimated that 100 per cent of Canadian energy exports, and 95 per cent of everything else, is covered by the USMCA<\/a>. The whopping 35-per-cent tariff only applies to less than 5 per cent of our exports.<\/p>\n

However, several Canadian industries are subject to sectoral tariffs, including a 50-per-cent levy on steel and aluminum, a 25-per-cent tariff on cars, and new duties on lumber. These hit hard because Canada is a major exporter of these goods, and our auto industry is fully integrated with U.S. supply chains. To the extent that Canadian-made vehicles use American parts, they receive a reduction in the auto duty, but steel, aluminum and lumber get no such break.<\/p>\n

Other U.S. trading partners, with the exception of Mexico, have no USMCA protections.<\/p>\n

Last Friday, Canada-U.S. Trade Minister Dominic LeBlanc said talks will continue<\/a> with the Americans, but that he was leaving Washington after a long period of intense negotiations, and that no progress was likely in the coming days.<\/p>\n

Canada has breathing room because of the USMCA, and so does Mexico. It got a 90-day extension on negotiations, with no new tariffs, on the same day as Canada was hit with the 35-per-cent levy.<\/p>\n

The USMCA has allowed Ottawa to rag the puck, and to avoid caving in to Washington\u2019s demands as quickly as other trading partners. Time may work in Canada\u2019s favour. The 35-per-cent tariff, whose legal excuse is that Canada is flooding the U.S. with fentanyl, is likely to be struck down<\/a> by the U.S. courts, though that won\u2019t happen quickly. Negative economic news \u2013 a small<\/a> helping<\/a> of which arrived last week<\/a> \u2013 could lead the American public and business to push back<\/a> more forcefully against Trump\u2019s tariff plans.<\/p>\n

The USMCA has been a shield for Canada, but it is up for renegotiation next year. Trump could also walk away with six months notice.<\/p>\n

The Canadian economy is holding up<\/a>, but there are many unknowns: Does Trumpenomics\u2019 vision for the future include a North American trading bloc, with Canada benefiting from lower tariffs than the rest of the world? Or does Trump want to subject Canada to the same tariffs as the rest of the world, which would sever continental automobile supply chains, while reducing most other exports?<\/p>\n

We are about to find out.<\/p>\n

ChartedThe Canadian economy limps alongOpen this photo in gallery:<\/a><\/p>\n

With the U.S., it\u2019s never-ending tariff drama. But now, the lack of a deal extends the months-long stretch of extreme uncertainty<\/a>, which is weighing on businesses and consumers. Many companies have paused investment and hiring plans, and consumers are holding off on big purchases, until the trade landscape becomes clearer. These are the current tariffs<\/a> between Canada and the U.S. since the latest deadline passed.<\/p>\n

BookmarkedOn our reading list<\/p>\n

The check: A Vancouver shoe-scanning company vies to speed up<\/a> airport security screening.<\/p>\n

The bite: AI excitement is driving the markets<\/a>. But what if it eats tech giants from within?<\/p>\n

The cut: For many chefs, sirloin and filet mignon aren\u2019t their first choice<\/a> for a good steak dinner.<\/p>\n

Morning update<\/p>\n

Global markets were on the rise<\/a> as expectations for the U.S. Federal Reserve\u2019s interest rate cuts grew, while investors assessed a new round of major corporate earnings. <\/p>\n

Wall Street futures were in positive territory after yesterday\u2019s rally. TSX futures pointed higher after Canada\u2019s main stock market was closed yesterday for a holiday.<\/p>\n

Overseas, the pan-European STOXX 600 was up 0.463 per cent in morning trading. Britain\u2019s FTSE 100 gained 0.49 per cent, Germany\u2019s DAX advanced 0.78 per cent and France\u2019s CAC 40 added 0.26 per cent.<\/p>\n

In Asia, Japan\u2019s Nikkei closed 0.64 per cent higher, while Hong Kong\u2019s Hang Seng rose 0.68 per cent.<\/p>\n

The Canadian dollar traded at 72.43 U.S. cents.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Good morning. Welcome back from the long weekend, did you have a chance to get out and about?…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":47010,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[1397,32717,49,48,3247,44,1412,2922],"class_list":{"0":"post-47009","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-canada","8":"tag-appwebview","9":"tag-businessbrief","10":"tag-ca","11":"tag-canada","12":"tag-newnewsletter","13":"tag-news","14":"tag-newsletter","15":"tag-noastack"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/47009","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=47009"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/47009\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/47010"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=47009"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=47009"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=47009"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}