Canola is making headlines again. It’s been the centre of trade negotiations with China since last year, when that country instituted 100 per cent tariffs on canola oil and meal in retaliation for Canadian tariffs on electric vehicles, instituted at the behest of the United States.
Now, as Prime Minister Mark Carney wraps up his trip to China, there’s a new canola deal, which would see canola seed tariffs drop to 15 per cent (from nearly 76 per cent) by March, and tariffs on canola meal removed completely. The preliminary agreement makes no mention of tariffs on canola oil.
With the U.S. and Canada now frenemies, Carney is trying to expand our trade network, including rejuvenating a long-icy Canada-China relationship. But even if dropping vehicle tariffs to restart the flow of canola makes sense geopolitically, it could be a problem nationally, with Ontario’s auto industry and Prairies canola growers at total disagreement about which trade stream is more important.
It appears, for the time being at least, the Prairies got their way. The deal for lower canola tariffs also allows close to 50,000 Chinese electric vehicles into the Canadian market — not great news for Ontario’s auto sector.
“Make no mistake: China now has a foothold in the Canadian market and will use it to their full advantage at the expense of Canadian workers,” Ontario Premier Doug Ford said in response to the news.
The tariffs are still in place and could possibly drop in March.
You want to use this as reason to Champion the Carney?