breakthrough
BEIJING
Chinese leader Xi Jinping and Canadian PM Mark Carney have announced lower tariffs, signalling a reset in their countries’ relationship after a key meeting in Beijing. China is expected to lower levies on Canadian canola oil from 85% to 15% by 1 March, while Ottawa has agreed to tax Chinese electric vehicles at the most-favoured-nation rate, 6.1%, Carney told reporters.
The deal is a breakthrough after years of strained ties and tit-for-tat levies. Xi hailed the “turnaround” in their relationship but it is also a win for Carney, the first Canadian leader to visit China in nearly a decade. He has been trying to diversify Canadian trade away from the US, his country’s biggest trading partner, following the uncertainty caused by Trump’s on-again-off-again tariffs.
The deal could also see more Chinese investments in Canada, right on America’s doorstep. Carney himself seemed to allude to the fact that this was a result of Trump’s tariffs, which have now pushed one of the US’s key allies towards its biggest rival.
He told reporters that Canada’s relationship with China had been more “predictable” in recent month and that he found talks with Beijing “realistic and respectful”.
