Canada PM Carney says tariff negotiations with US may not conclude by Aug 1

 Prime Minister Mark Carney said on Wednesday that Canada's negotiations with the United States might not conclude by Donald Trump's Aug. 1 deadline as the president added new trade measures that could further hinder some Canadian businesses.

Carney said talks have been complex, comprehensive and constructive. He also said they are ongoing and cover "a broad variety of topics."

"There are many areas for co-operation between Canada and the United States, including defence spending, security spending, investments, which is one of the reasons why we're having these broader discussions," Carney said at a news conference in Ottawa.

Trump sent a letter to Carney threatening to impose 35 per cent tariffs if Canada doesn't make a trade deal by Friday. The White House has said those duties would not apply to goods compliant with the Canada-U.S.-Mexico Agreement on trade, better known as CUSMA.

The Canadian economy is also being slammed by Trump's Section 232 tariffs on steel, aluminum and automobiles.

Trump on Wednesday signed executive orders for 50 per cent tariffs on semi-finished copper products starting Friday. The president, however, didn't include imports of the refined metal in his order, leaving many in the Canadian copper industry feeling relieved.

In a separate order, Trump suspended de minimis exemptions — which had allowed packages worth $800 or less to ship to the United States to avoid tariffs. As part of his reasoning for the change, Trump cited the flow of fentanyl into the United States.

Canadian Federation of Independent Business President and CEO Dan Kelly said suspending the de minimis exemption "is bad news for many Canadian small businesses." The federation's data shows about one-third of small Canadian exporters used the exemption to ship to U.S. consumers duty free, Kelly said in a post on social media.

Pascal Chan, the vice president of strategic policy and supply chains at the Canadian Chamber of Commerce, said it adds "another layer of uncertainty for Canadian businesses exporting to the U.S.," particularly small- and medium-sized businesses.

"Any increase in compliance costs and delivery delays will only serve to compound the pressure on the cross-border supply chains that have long fuelled our shared economic prosperity," Chan said in a statement.

The latest trade changes comes as countries around the world are set to face staggering tariffs when Trump's deadline to make deals passes.

https://ca.finance.yahoo.com/news/pm-carney-says-trade-talks-230617963.html