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What Trump’s agreement with the U.K. suggests about trade talks with Canada

May 8, 2025 | 11:54 AM

WASHINGTON — Experts say U.S. President Donald Trump’s preliminary trade agreement with the United Kingdom could offer hints about how his administration might negotiate with Canada.

The agreement announced today is not finalized and many details remain unclear, but it sent a signal to nations around the world rattled by Trump’s attempt to deploy tariffs to upend global trade.

Under the deal, baseline 10 per cent tariffs on most U.K. imports to the United States would stay in place, while duties on steel and aluminum would be lifted.

Trump’s tariffs on U.K. automobile imports would be reduced to 10 per cent on a quota of 100,000 vehicles.

Carleton University international affairs professor Fen Osler Hampson says the deal shows the Trump administration is amenable to negotiation — a positive sign for Ottawa as it awaits the review of the Canada-U.S.-Mexico Agreement on trade.

Hampson says the U.K deal indicates Trump is open to lower tariffs but likely won’t eliminate them altogether.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 8, 2025.

Kelly Geraldine Malone, The Canadian Press

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