Trump administration says it sees no urgency in Canada trade deal

U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer said in a CNBC interview on Friday, Sept. 25, that Washington sees no urgency to reach a trade deal with Canada. He said the U.S. is still getting oil, gas and potash and shipping agricultural products across the border, adding the administration is comfortable with where it is and that there is no urgency on our side. Greer said of the August talks that collapsed after Ottawa walked away: we gave them a deal. They left. Prime Minister Mark Carney called the U.S. offer a bad deal that asked too much and offered too little. The U.S. began collecting 50% duties on roughly $28-billion of Canadian goods on Aug. 22; Canada matched tariffs dollar for dollar the day after Labour Day, on top of existing U.S. levies on steel, aluminum, autos and lumber. New U.S. import bans on Canadian alcoholic beverages, motorcycles and dairy take effect next week, and Washington has threatened to raise tariffs on Canadian autos, parts and steel to 50% from January. Reporting differs on the goods value hit last month. Mexican officials say U.S.-Mexico talks could occur in October. The Canadian Embassy in Washington did not immediately comment.