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OTTAWA \u2014 Business leaders and academics say they hope to see Canada and the U.S. maintain free trade protections for most goods once an agreement is reached, even if the negotiations can\u2019t stave off certain sectoral tariffs.<\/p>\n
It\u2019s unclear if the two countries will stick to the Aug. 1 deadline for wrapping up talks, as Prime Minister Mark Carney said Monday negotiations were in an \u201cintense phase\u201d but U.S. President Donald Trump told reporters last week that Canada wasn\u2019t a priority for his administration.<\/p>\n
Whether a deal is announced Friday or later, Canadian Federation of Independent Business president Dan Kelly says his organization\u2019s members feel \u201ca good chunk\u201d of trade must remain tariff-free in order for talks to be considered successful.<\/p>\n
He says it wouldn\u2019t be a win for Canada if the trade agreement ends up looking similar to the deal struck by the U.S. with the European Union on Sunday.<\/p>\n
That framework imposes a 15 per cent tariff on most goods imported into the U.S., including European automobiles, and no carveouts for key products like pharmaceuticals and steel.<\/p>\n
Kelly says Canadian business leaders will also be watching to find out what levies will remain on imports from the U.S., noting Canada\u2019s ongoing retaliatory tariffs \u201care really crippling small businesses even more than the U.S. tariffs.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u00a92025 The Canadian Press<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n