Canada not OK with steel quota system, insider says
WASHINGTON Canada is not about to agree to quotas or other limits on its exports in order to get the United States to lift punishing tariffs on steel and aluminum, says a source close to the ongoing talks to resolve the trade standoff.
Where the two sides ultimately end up remains to be seen, but the Canadian source — speaking on condition of anonymity — described the idea of a quota system as a non-starter and a concession that Canada is not prepared to make. “They’re trying to get us to agree to a quota system, which we’re not going to do, because it’s ridiculous,” said the source. “They know what they need to do to get a deal. The ball is entirely in their court.”
Other sources briefed on the talks, however, say quotas are indeed on the table as the two sides work toward getting the tariffs lifted before voters in the U.S. head to the polls for pivotal midterm elections Nov. 6 that could, depending on the outcome, have ramifications for the U.s.-mexicoCanada Agreement.
Donald Trump imposed the socalled Section 232 tariffs — 25 per cent on steel and 10 per cent on aluminum — in June on national security grounds.
But the levies, which the U.S. president has acknowledged publicly helped to expedite the new North American trade deal known as USMCA, did not go away when the agreement was reached recently at the 11th hour.
But the anti-canada commentary has not disappeared entirely.
On Capitol Hill this week, Trump economic adviser Larry Kudlow related a story in which an unidentified White House official described Prime Minister Justin Trudeau as “that punk little kid running Canada.”
“They’ve got their spokespeople out there calling us names, and their steel people out there attacking Chrystia. … I think a lot of this is just show business,” said the Canadian official.