Canadian tariff talks collapse

The Guardian - The Canadian prime minister, Mark Carney, has promised to match US tariffs “dollar for dollar” after the two sides failed to agree a trade deal by the deadline of midnight on Friday.

The trade row is the biggest rupture in recent relations between Washington and one of its closest allies and trading partners as Donald Trump’s bellicose foreign policy angered officials in Ottawa.

The two sides appeared close to a deal on Friday to lower tariffs on steel, aluminium and cars, but was scuttled at the last minute. The two sides blamed each other for the collapse.

Canadian officials had worked hard in good faith but “last-minute changes in the US proposed terms were unfair, uneconomic and called into question the reliability of any deal”, Carney said in a statement.

US officials accused Canada of collapsing the deal by seeking additional concessions at the last minute.  Carney recalled his negotiators as Canada vowed to match Washington’s tough approach. No further talks are planned.