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CTV News
6 days ago
- Business
- CTV News
‘Let's be smarter than the U.S. is': Experts discuss trade strategy amid Trump tariffs
As Canadians continue to navigate the ever-changing trade policies of U.S. President Donald Trump's administration, experts say officials in Ottawa are walking a tight rope between appeasement and retaliation. '(Trump) takes retaliation very personally, so I'm not sure it's worth the calculation,' Drew Fagan, professor at the Munk School of Global Affairs & Public Policy, told BNN Bloomberg in a Tuesday interview. 'Canada's a big country, it's the tenth biggest economy in the world, but we're a middle weight fighting with a super-heavy weight, I don't think you want to go punching with them and thinking you're an equal; you're not.' A Friday deadline passed without a trade deal between the U.S. and Canada, and the Trump administration implemented a 35 per cent tariff on Canadian goods entering the U.S. that are not already covered under the existing North American free trade agreement. Most Canadian products exported to the U.S. do fall under the Canada-United States-Mexico agreement (CUSMA) and thus remain duty-free for now. That deal, however, is slated for renegotiation in 2026. 'For (Canada), the bigger negotiation is the one over the renewal, the review and the renegotiation of CUSMA next year,' Fagan argued. 'When (Trump) negotiated the renewal of NAFTA (North American Free Trade Agreement) in his first term, he put additional pressure on Canada by putting tariffs... on steel and aluminum that are key products that we export to the U.S.' It's possible, Fagan said, that Trump is carrying out a similar strategy now. 'The only thing that's really stopping him are the courts in the United States,' he said. From the start, Trump's legal justification for the tariffs placed on Canadian goods came through the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA), which gives the U.S. president authority to enact economic measures typically reserved for the U.S. Congress. 'There is a significant court case going on now… it's possible that the court will strike (the tariffs) down, but of course this president has a way of kind of working around court decisions… but we should expect that it'll be a bit of a full tilt in 2026,' said Fagan. Canada's next moves Although most Canadian exporters with U.S. customer bases are free to operate without tariffs for the time being, it remains unclear what moves Washington or Ottawa will make next in the ongoing trade conflict. But those industries that export non-CUSMA compliant goods to the U.S. need relief as soon as possible, says John Boscariol, leader of the International Trade and Investment Law Group at McCarthy-Tétrault LLP. 'For our exporters in the steel, aluminum and auto sector and now copper, they continue to face sectoral tariffs, so they are continuing to be hurt by those tariffs,' he told BNN Bloomberg in a Tuesday interview. 'What we are anticipating hopefully is that, as this agreement is being negotiated, we're going to see some kind of deal, some kind of resolution over those sectoral tariffs going forward and that's really how we will judge whether this is a good deal or not.' Many within the Canadian business community had been hoping for a new trade deal before last week's deadline to ease the burden on companies impacted by current tariff rates. But it's unclear if an imminent agreement is in the cards, Fagan noted. 'Conversations are continuing… the (U.S.) president and the prime minister are expected to talk this week,' he said. '(But) I don't expect, and I don't think many people expect a deal to be done soon with regard to Canada and the United States.' Prime Minister Mark Carney has said repeatedly since taking office this spring that Canada needs to diversify its economic partnerships around the world and become less dependent on the U.S. in light of the trade developments this year. But many of those partnerships are still in the early stages, and most Canadian exporters will continue to rely on U.S. markets at least in the near and medium term, Boscariol said. 'There is that opportunity to diversify and certainly the provinces are trying to do their part in reducing provincial barriers but in the short to medium term, we're looking to these trade negotiations to provide some sort of relief or resolution,' he said. While in search of that resolution, Fagan said that Canada's leaders should rely on their strengths, which have always been different than those of their U.S. counterparts. 'Let's be smarter than the U.S. is; we always are in negotiations,' he said, 'that's our superpower and I think we will be in the upcoming negotiations as well.'
Vancouver Sun
25-07-2025
- Vancouver Sun
Canadian passport ranked more powerful than the U.S.
Canadians have one of the most powerful passports in the world, ranking ahead of the United States in a global index. U.K.-based consultancy firm Henley & Partners recently released this year's global passport ranking . It's based on mobility, meaning where in the world the holder of the passport can travel to without a visa. In order to rank the countries, it relies on exclusive information from travel information database, the International Air Transport Association (IATA). The top-ranking country is Singapore. That's because its passport holders have visa-free access to the most global destinations included in the list, at 193 destinations. Start your day with a roundup of B.C.-focused news and opinion. By signing up you consent to receive the above newsletter from Postmedia Network Inc. A welcome email is on its way. If you don't see it, please check your junk folder. The next issue of Sunrise will soon be in your inbox. Please try again Interested in more newsletters? Browse here. Passports receive a score if no visa is required. The same score is given if the passport holder can obtain a visa on arrival (VOA), a visitor's permit, or an electronic travel authority (ETA) when entering the destination. An ETA, for example, is needed when Canadians enter the United Kingdom for travel purposes such as tourism, family visits, business, and short-term study. Passports receive a different score if a visa is required, or if a passport holder has to obtain a government-approved electronic visa (e-Visa) before departure, or pre-departure government approval for a visa on arrival. For example, Canadians require a visa to enter Afghanistan, Algeria, Azerbaijan and Cuba. Canada came in 8th place in the 2025 list, tied with Estonia and the United Arab Emirates. This is ahead of the American passport, which came in 10th place this year. Historically, according to the firm's list, Canada has maintained a high ranking. Since 2006, it has not fallen below 9th place. At its peak, the Canadian passport came in second place in 2014. Canada's ranking is 'based as much as anything on other countries' confidence that Canadians won't overstay their welcome (and likewise for any set of countries),' University of Toronto's Munk School of Global Affairs & Public Policy professor Drew Fagan told National Post over email on Thursday. 'Canada's relative safety and prosperity means that other countries can be confident that Canadians are coming for a good time, not a long time,' he said. In 2025, Canadians can visit 184 countries without needing a visa, according to the Henley & Partners ranking. 'Countries at the top of the ranking however must work to maintain it, or they will be overtaken. Looking back slightly further, the U.S. was number one on the ranking in 2014, but by only gaining net access to 8 destinations since then, the U.S. has fallen by 9 spots as other top ranking countries outpaced them,' said Souad Ouared, associate director, private clients at Henley & Partners Canada, in an emailed statement to National Post on Friday. 'Japan on the other hand has added 19 destinations to its score since 2014 and gained one spot in the ranking from 3rd to 2nd. Canada sits in the middle of these two. It was ranked 2nd in 2014 and has lost 6 places since then, with a net access gain of 11 destinations.' The ranking shows travellers the relative strength of the passport they hold and the global access it gives them, explained Ouared. 'There are many factors that affect a passport's ranking, including countries updating their visa systems, or diplomatic relations including bi-lateral visa free agreements. It is unusual for a passport's ranking to change significantly from year to year, but rather will see a trend of incremental gains and losses over time,' she said. One of the recent changes that has affected Canada's ranking is the country being excluded from China's list of countries that can visit without a visa . Canadians still require a visa to visit China for tourism, business, study or work. Another recent change? 'The Canadian passport lost access to Brazil, with Brazil citing a lack of reciprocity as the reason,' said Ouared. 'That being said, the Canadian passport remains one of the most powerful in the world, and it is a privilege for all who hold it, considering the broad global access it provides to key destinations.' Roughly 70 per cent of Canadians hold valid passports and more than 24.6 million passports are in circulation, according to data from the federal government updated in 2022. Our website is the place for the latest breaking news, exclusive scoops, longreads and provocative commentary. Please bookmark and sign up for our daily newsletter, Posted, here .
