Carney, Trump talk trade; teams to work on a deal

Prime Minister Mark Carney said Sunday he had a “good conversation” with U.S. President Donald Trump on the future of Canada-U.S. trade, as the two countries remain without a deal two days before the U.S. midterm elections.

Carney said in a social media post that the call “builds on our recent constructive discussions” about the outlines of a possible agreement. “Our teams will now be working in the coming weeks to deliver that outcome,” he wrote, CBC News reported.

Speaking to reporters Sunday evening, Trump said “we have the concept of a deal that’s going to be great for our farmers, great for our country, and it will be fine for Canada.”

A White House spokesperson said in a statement that the administration “welcomes continued engagement with Canada as we work toward finalizing the details of a deal that will deliver meaningful results for the American people.”

Carney described the possible agreement as one that would create jobs for workers, boost affordability for families and fully respect Canada’s languages, culture and sovereignty.

The tone is more upbeat than the one Carney struck last week, when he said Canada was not in a position to agree to a U.S. trade deal. CBC News also reported that sources said talks have intensified in recent weeks but that the conversations did not mean an agreement was imminent. A source familiar with the discussions told Radio-Canada that key elements remain unresolved and that the two sides are “not on the verge of an agreement just yet.”

Negotiators from both countries failed to reach a deal after a flurry of talks in August, and each side blamed the other for the collapse. Carney has said he walked away because Washington demanded terms that would destroy major Canadian industries, including auto, steel and aluminum. He has also said the U.S. took issue at the last minute with Canadian rules that make French-language content easy to find on streaming platforms, and tried to restrict Canada’s ability to strike trade deals with other countries.

U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick has alleged that Canadian negotiators raised tariff relief on medium- and heavy-duty trucks only at the last minute to kill the deal. U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer has said there was no requirement in the text restricting Canada’s future trade deals, and that the U.S. sought to discuss how Canada could align its tariffs so it does not become a back door for steel and aluminum from other countries.

The call comes as Washington’s trade policy is in the spotlight ahead of Tuesday’s midterms. We reported on Oct. 31 that no Canada-U.S. trade deal was expected before Nov. 3, and on Oct. 30 that the U.S. had added 100 Canadian tariff lines and dropped 22. Carney has also been pursuing a closer relationship with Europe, which we covered in Carney targets June deal on Canada-EU associate membership.

Neither government has said what specific issues were discussed on the call or released a timeline for finalizing a deal.

Source: CBC News. Developing: the account of the call so far comes from Carney’s post, Trump’s remarks and a White House statement as reported by CBC.

If you find reporting like this useful, consider supporting Canada News Media, an independent Canadian newsroom with no corporate parent.