PM Carney says Canada has no plans to pursue free trade agreement with China as Trump threatens tariffs
Carney said his latest deal with China only reduced tariffs on a few sectors recently affected by the tariffs.
Trump claimed otherwise, saying, “China is successfully and completely taking over Canada, once a Great Country. Very sad to see this happen. I hope they leave Ice Hockey alone! President DJT”
The Prime Minister said that within the scope of the free trade agreement with the USA and Mexico, there are commitments not to make free trade agreements with non-market economies without prior notice.
“We have no intention of doing this with China or any non-market economy,” Carney said. “What we’re doing with China is correcting some of the issues that have developed over the last few years.”
In 2024, Canada followed suit with the United States by imposing a 100% tariff on electric vehicles from Beijing and a 25% tariff on steel and aluminum. China responded by imposing import duties of 100 percent on Canadian canola oil and meal and 25 percent on pork and seafood.
Carney, who left the United States this month during a visit to China, dropped a 100% tariff on Chinese electric cars in exchange for lower tariffs on Canadian products. China’s EV exports to Canada, which come with a 6.1% tariff rate, will initially have an annual limit of 49,000 vehicles, rising to about 70,000 within five years, Carney said. He stated that there is no cap before 2024. He also said China’s starting limit on electric vehicle imports is about 3% of the 1.8 million vehicles sold annually in Canada, and in return China is expected to begin investing in the Canadian auto industry within three years.
Trump released a video on Sunday in which the chief executive of the Canadian Association of Vehicle Manufacturers warned that there would be no Canadian auto industry without U.S. access, noting that the Canadian market alone is too small to justify large-scale production from China.
“Must watch. Canada is systematically destroying itself. The China deal is a disaster for them. It will go down in history as one of the worst deals in history. All their business is moving to the USA. I want to see Canada SURVIVE AND THRIVE! President DJT,” Trump posted on social media.
“Carney is sorely mistaken if he thinks Canada will become a ‘Dropport Port’ for China to ship goods and products to the United States,” Trump said in Saturday’s post.
“We cannot allow Canada to be a gateway for the Chinese to funnel cheap goods into the United States,” U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said on ABC’s “This Week.”
“There is a (United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement), but it’s based on that, it’s going to be renegotiated this summer, and I’m not sure what Prime Minister Carney is doing other than trying to virtue signal to his globalist friends here in Davos.”
Trump’s threat came amid an escalating war of words with Carney as the Republican president’s attempt to buy Greenland has strained the NATO alliance.
Carney has emerged as the leader of a movement enabling countries to find ways to engage and counter the United States under Trump. Speaking before Trump in Davos, Carney said, “The middle powers need to act together because if you are not at the table, you are on the menu,” and warned against the pressures of the big powers without mentioning Trump’s name. The Prime Minister received widespread praise and attention for his remarks, and he outshined Trump at the World Economic Forum.
Trump’s move to buy Greenland comes after he repeatedly jabbed Canada over its sovereignty and suggested it too be incorporated into the United States as the 51st state. This week, he posted an altered image on social media showing a map of the United States that includes Canada, Venezuela, Greenland and Cuba as part of its territory.
