WASHINGTON—Canada and the United States are “finally starting to converge” on the dispute over automotive manufacturing that has been a key obstacle to the success of North American Free Trade Agreement negotiations, President Donald Trump’s trade chief said Wednesday.U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer’s comments to the House Ways and Means Committee corroborated the optimistic words from Canadian Ambassador David MacNaughton the day prior.MacNaughton told a Washington conference that talks over the last two weeks have been “more positive than I’ve seen them before.” He then told reporters, according to the Canadian Press, that the Trump administration has introduced ideas that would essentially replace the administration’s controversial previous proposal for a strict minimum on the amount of each car that would have to be made in the United States to avoid tariffs.Lighthizer did not offer any such details. But in the most positive public comment he has made on the automotive issue since negotiations began in August, he told lawmakers that “I think we’re in a pretty good place” on the automotive file.Lighthizer also sounded optimistic on the potential for a deal. Of all 33 chapters being negotiated, he said, “I personally don’t think there’s a single one that won’t be a significant improvement to the United States.”Lighthizer has regularly decried what he has described as a lack of progress in the negotiations. On Wednesday, he sounded more understanding — telling lawmakers that he did not expect Canada and Mexico to budge on important issues like agriculture and intellectual property “until you get to the end” of the negotiating process, not wanting to make concessions before a deal is in sight.Lighthizer, however, also criticized various Canadian policies, making clear that significant sticking points remain. He was prompted by criti ...
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