Monday, June 25, 2018

Canada should prepare for countervailing duties

Canadian farmers are being side-swiped by the tariff wars triggered by United States President Donald Trump.

Pork producers in particular are hurt by the retaliatory tariffs imposed or coming from Mexico and China.

Those are the two largest U.S. pork export markets, and any dip in those exports will back up pork in the U.S. and lower prices. That, in turn, will ripple right across the border to depress Canadian hog prices.

Trump and his Agriculture Secretary Sonny Purdue have promised compensation for U.S. farmers hurt by the tariffs.

Canada ought to prepare to immediately apply countervailing duties on U.S. pork equal to the subsidies.

Nobody wins in this foolish tariff war, but Trump seems to believe it makes him popular.

He’s crazy, but he appointed his doctor to head the Department of Veterans Affairs, one of the largest departments in the U.S.

I guess he won’t be telling Trump any time soon how crazy he is.