If free trade is fair game in a new Trump administration, should we be worried?
January 18, 20171 min readCanada is the largest trading partner of the United States of America with billions of dollars worth of goods and services criss-crossing north and south across the border daily between the two countries.
During the recent election, Donald Trump campaigned against trade agreements calling them unfair and a deterrent to a successful U.S. economy.
Now elected – and as of Friday he will be the president – Mr. Trump has instructed his policy makers that agreements like NAFTA are now on the table and will likely face renegotiation.
NAFTA is the world’s largest free trade area encompassing 450 million people and measures $20.08 trillion (US) by Gross Domestic Product (GDP) annually.
Now some have said that the focus is more on Mexico, where companies have literally packed up shop in America to reopen south of the border with a cheaper workforce and reduced standards.
However with the over 1.6 trillion dollars (US) in trade now in question, what might renegotiation mean to important industries like softwood lumber, automotive, and agriculture in Canada?
So what will it mean to Canada and what could it mean to you?
Jari Sundholm is a Professor of Business at Cambrian College. He has worked and taught in both Canada and Europe over the last 20 years and is an expert in the fields of international business, economics, and operations management. Jari is available to speak with media regarding this very important subject regarding Canada's economy. Simply click on his icon to arrange an interview.