U.S. and Canada agree to eliminate steel and aluminum tariffs
(The Star Movies)

WASHINGTON—The U.S. and Canada have agreed to drop their tariffs on each other’s steel and aluminum and all related retaliatory tariffs, removing a major source of friction between the two countries and a key obstacle to the ratification of the new NAFTA.Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is expected to announce the agreement in an appearance with Stelco steelworkers in Hamilton at 1:30 p.m. Trudeau spoke with President Donald Trump earlier today.Trump’s administration had insisted for months that the tariffs on Canada would not be lifted without quotas being imposed in their place. But Trudeau objected, and the deal does not include quotas, two Canadian sources said. The details of what Trudeau did agree to were not immediately available.The tariffs are expected to be eliminated by next week.Trump imposed a 25 per cent tariff on steel and 10 per cent tariff on aluminum from Canada, Mexico and other countries just under a year ago, controversially using a “national security� provision of U.S. trade law. Trudeau responded with equivalent tariffs on U.S. steel and aluminum, plus dozens of other products produced in parts of the country critical to Trump’s political coalition.Trump had faced pressure to rescind the tariffs from Canada, his party and his voters. Trudeau’s government had warned Trump that Parliament would not hold a vote to approve the new NAFTA, one of his top policy priorities, if the tariffs remained in place. Senior Republican legislators told Trump that Congress also wanted the tariffs removed before holding a vote. And farmers and business groups in Trump-friendly rural states complained that they were being hurt by the retaliatory tariffs from both Canada and Mexico.The U.S. has also come to an agreement to lift its steel and aluminum tariffs on Mexico.While the tariffs are a key impediment to getting the new NAFTA approved, several other hurdles will remain. The Democrats who control the U.S. House of Repr ...