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With the U.S.-Canada trade war dominating the final days of the U.S. midterm campaign, trade discussions between the two countries have intensified. But sources tell CBC News and Radio-Canada that doesn’t mean a deal is imminent.<\/p>\n
A source familiar with the discussions told Radio-Canada that there are “substantive conversations, but there are still key elements that remain unresolved.”<\/p>\n
“We are not on the verge of an agreement just yet,” the same source said.<\/p>\n
Another Canadian government source told CBC News on Monday that while discussions between officials from both countries have become more frequent in recent days, the state of play is best understood by reviewing comments made last week by Janice Charette, Canada’s chief trade negotiator.<\/p>\n
“Pens are down, and the doors are open,” Charette said at the Toronto Global Forum on Thursday. “Canada stands ready to continue discussions.”<\/p>\n
Charette said that while conversations are taking place at “multiple levels,” they aren’t happening at the negotiating table.\u00a0<\/p>\n
“We’re having conversations to see whether or not we can come back to the table for a set of detailed negotiations,” she said. “We don’t know exactly when that’s going to happen.”<\/p>\n
Prime Minister Mark Carney told reporters on Monday that his government’s position hasn’t changed since talks fell apart in August and that he’s only looking to sign a deal that’s “in the interests of Canadians.”\u00a0<\/p>\n
“We have very clear bottom lines, red lines, which meant that we were not willing to sign what was offered in August,” the prime minister said.<\/p>\n
“To the extent any progress has been made, it’s because the U.S. is coming closer to our position.”<\/p>\n
According to several Canadian sources, the gap between the two sides has been too wide in recent days to reach an agreement.<\/p>\n
“Canada remains in constructive dialogue with our U.S. counterparts on a range of priorities,” a spokesperson from Canada-U.S. Trade Minister Dominic LeBlanc’s office said on Sunday.\u00a0<\/p>\n
“We stand ready to work constructively and in good faith towards a more mutually beneficial trading relationship that respects Canada’s interests.”<\/p>\n
A Canadian source told CBC News that LeBlanc had to stay in Ottawa this weekend because calls with Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick and U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer increased in the past few days. <\/p>\n
Some industry stakeholders received calls from senior members of the federal government over the weekend to discuss the current status of trade discussions, according to two industry sources.<\/p>\n
U.S. trade spin and the midterms<\/p>\n
U.S. President Donald Trump and other senior U.S. officials have suggested in recent days that progress is being made toward a deal with Canada.<\/p>\n
“We’ll have \u200bthat settled pretty soon. They’re willing to give us anything \u200bat this moment,” Trump told a campaign rally in Port Huron, Mich., on Sunday.<\/p>\n
And Kevin Hassett, the director of the National Economic Council and a key economic adviser to the White House, suggested on Fox News that trade talks had been hampered by the referendum vote in Alberta but since then “negotiations have picked up.”<\/p>\n
“They’re gathering steam. Secretary Lutnick has been talking to his Canadian counterparts all week. I think it’s very close to finally having a deal on that,” Hassett said.\u00a0<\/p>\n
WATCH | More about Trump’s stop in Michigan:![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/1793050573_627_default.jpg\")
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Trump campaigns in battleground Michigan with trade talk swirling<\/p>\n
U.S. President Donald Trump campaigned in Michigan with less than 10 days before the midterm elections. The U.S.-Canada trade war has become a key issue in several battleground states.<\/p>\n
While the White House may want to send a political message that progress is being made on the trade front, it is far from clear whether the U.S. administration is prepared to make Canada an acceptable offer.<\/p>\n
Polls show Trump’s dispute with Canada is deeply unpopular among American voters<\/a> in both major parties.\u00a0<\/p>\n Canadian sources that have spoken with Radio-Canada caution it’s in the Americans’ interest to “spin” the narrative that a deal with Canada is possible \u2014 especially with the midterm elections a week away.<\/p>\n David Axelrod, a former chief strategist to U.S. president Barack Obama, suggested in a post on social media Monday that “an 11th-hour trade deal [with] Canada is an option [Trump] still might pursue to help his Senate candidates in northern states.”<\/p>\n On Friday Trump removed some tariffs from some goods \u2014 while hitting other products with new tariffs \u2014 in order to help Maine Republican Sen. Susan Collins<\/a> whose campaign has been frustrated by the trade war’s impact in her state.\u00a0<\/p>\n Ford says ‘we’ll see what happens’<\/p>\n