NAFTA re-negotiations between the United States and Canada have not gone well. It is one of the reasons why Donald Trump did not meet with Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau at the United Nations. None the less, negotiations have continued. A deadline for an official agreement has been set tonight at midnight EDT.
This story is big news up in Canada. The Canadian Broadcasting Corporation or the CBC has been providing special coverage of the talks all day. The Canadians are afraid that a deal won’t be struck and that Trump will slap all sorts of tariffs on Canada.
This deadline is pressuring the Canadians into making a deal. They know that they need access to the American market more than the United States needs access to a Canadian market. Not having access to the United States economy would be a huge blow to the Canadians.
The CBC is saying that they’re close to a deal but who knows if that’s accurate. One of the main items at dispute is the dairy market. The United States is effectively blocked from accessing the Canadian dairy market due to the high tariffs that Canada has placed on American dairy products. Automobile tariffs is another key item at play.
Trump has Canada in a position where they absolutely have to make a deal. And whatever deal they strike is going to be better than the original NAFTA which was a disaster for the American manufacturing sector.
