Canadian government sources say Ottawa will defend its interests first and may not be able to help Mexico during the NAFTA renegotiations demanded by President Trump, reported Reuters. It quoted a source on the sidelines of a cabinet retreat as saying, “Our national interests come first and the friendship comes second.”
“The comments are some of the starkest yet by Canadian officials, who are increasingly convinced Mexico will suffer the most damage from changes to the North American Free Trade Agreement,” said Reuters. However, the government says it will not formally abandon Mexico. But Trump has directed the bulk of his complaints toward Mexico and threatened a border tax on imports.
Canada and Mexico are the second- and third-largest U.S. trade partners, with Canada just a hair behind the overall leader, China. But Canada-U.S. trade was $76 billion, or 13 percent, larger than Mexico-U.S. trade in 2015. The same line-up — China, Canada and Mexico — applies to U.S. ag exports. When it comes to ag imports, Mexico and Canada run neck-and-neck; together, they are forecast to provide nearly 40 percent of total U.S. imports forecast for $112.5 billion this fiscal year.