Trade spats must not derail ties

This appeared in the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette: There is no good reason for Donald Trump or any other senior American official to ping Canada.

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has so far taken a number of steps to show goodwill in his interactions with Trump. He came to call at the White House. He apparently restructured his own government to facilitate smooth communications and working arrangements between Ottawa and Washington.

Now, two issues in the generally routine trading relationship are emerging — lumber and dairy exports.

The U.S. buys about 69 per cent of Canada’s lumber exports. American buyers say Canadian provincial governments indirectly subsidize these exports. Canadians and some Americans claim American construction costs will go up, dampening U.S. economic growth, if higher tariffs on Canadian lumber are imposed. Meanwhile, American dairy farmers claim that Canada has taken steps to deter the growth of its dairy market to U.S. imports.

These two issues could point to a deal, if the Trump administration is ready to move toward easing trade.

Canada was America’s best customer in 2016. America was Canada’s best customer the same year. One of the principal reasons the U.S. has been able to play its basically unchallenged role in the world is because its northern border is Canada. It is important not to lose sight of those facts when people like Commerce Secretary Wilbur L. Ross call into question Canada’s relationship with the U.S. over minor trade issues.