Trump "Will not hold trade talks with Canada for the time being"

Complaint over Ontario ad containing Reagan's criticism of tariffs

U.S. President Trump said, "I will not hold (trade) talks with Canada for the time being."

According to Bloomberg on the 27th (local time), President Trump was asked on Air Force One whether he might meet with Prime Minister Mark Carney of Canada, who was visiting Korea to attend the APEC summit, and said, "I don't want to meet him."

President Trump said he would suspend all trade talks with Canada due to strong displeasure over an Ontario ad aired in some parts of the United States.

The Ontario ad contained content from a speech by former U.S. President Ronald Reagan criticizing tariffs and advocating free trade. Expressing great displeasure with the ad, Trump said, "I will suspend trade negotiations with Canada for the time being," and announced he would raise tariffs on Canadian products by an additional 10%.

Ontario Premier Doug Ford said he would stop airing the ad after the weekend, but President Trump expressed displeasure that the ad aired during the World Series broadcast.

Canada is currently subject to the U.S. base tariff rate of 35%, but most Canadian goods are not subject to this rate because of exemption provisions for products produced under the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement. President Trump did not specify whether those exemption provisions would be maintained if tariffs were raised.

The U.S. imposes sector-specific tariffs in addition to the base rate. Canadian steel and aluminum products are subject to a 50% U.S. tariff on foreign metals, and Canadian cars and trucks may be only partially exempt from the 25% tariff that President Trump applies to most foreign-made vehicles.

President Trump said that although the Ontario ad was funded by Ontario rather than the federal government, "(Carney) must have known."

Prime Minister Carney has largely remained quiet on the matter so far. He said on the 26th that he was ready to resume trade talks with the U.S. at any time.

Carney told reporters in Malaysia, "Canada is ready to build on progress achieved through negotiations or discussions with the U.S."

Kim Jeong-ah, guest reporter kja@hankyung.com