US, Canada reach trade deal to avert steep tariffs, Trump says

BREAKING, Washington and Ottawa reach an agreement to avert a 50-percent duty on Canadian exports shortly before the midnight deadline.The United States and Canada have reached a deal to avert steep tariffs on billions of dollars of Canadian goods, a reprieve for exporters fearful of a renewed trade war between the trade partners.US President Donald Trump made the announcement shortly before a 50-percent duty was due to take effect at midnight.Recommended Stories list of 4 itemslist 1 of 4Quebec separatist says no independence referendum while Trump in officelist 2 of 4US ambassador to Israel calls settler violence ‘terror’list 3 of 4How Ebola became the deadliest outbreak in DR Congo’s historylist 4 of 4US refineries taking in half of Venezuela’s oil output, official saysend of listCanadian Prime Minister Mark Carney confirmed shortly afterwards that the US had agreed to suspend the tariffs until August 22.The 11th-hour breakthrough came after Trump and Carney held talks on Tuesday aimed at finding common ground after weeks of fraught trade negotiations.The tariffs would have applied to some $20.2bn worth of Canadian exports, affecting goods ranging from electronics and industrial machinery to furniture, dairy products and wine.In a post on Truth Social on Tuesday, Trump said the sides had reached a deal “subject to finalization of documents”.Neither Trump nor Carney provided details of the agreement, but the US president appeared to link the breakthrough to his efforts to revive the Keystone XL Pipeline.The Keystone XL Pipeline, which has faced strong opposition and numerous delays since it was first proposed in 2008, would transport about 830,000 barrels of crude oil each day between the Canadian province of Alberta and the US state of Nebraska.Former US President Joe Biden revoked a key permit for the US stretch of the pipeline in 2021 on environmental and economic grounds, effectively killing the project.“The great Keystone XL Pipeline, long ago killed by Sleepy Joe Biden, may be awoken from the grave!” Trump said in his social media post.