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Joining us now is Mary Young, Canadian Minister of Export Promotion, International Trade and Economic Development. Minister.
Good to have you with us always you day, You're always good to talk to you and new day and new term.
This time it includes lumber. How are you looking at the expanding list of tariffs.
Well, when the executive order first came into Canada very recently, it included twenty five percent across the board on everything, including well everything, and then ten percent on energy. What we're pleased about is to be able to work with the American administration to get a thirty.
Day pause on that.
And while at the same time working with the American administration, we've been very clear terriffs are expensive for America. They make no sense when seventy percent of what I export in the United States, the United States takes adds value to it and then helps them be more competitive with their products. Adding a tariff just simply makes it more expensive for Americans. Adding teriffs to Canadian exports simply means that it's going to cost Americans more at the grocery store.
It's going to cost Americans more at the pumps. So it makes no sense. We will continue to reiterate that message. We've been very clear. We don't want to be here, we don't want to initiate anything, but should there be punishing tariffs on Canadian on Canada, we will respond accordingly.
But in the meantime, we are having conversations with the Americans, as we do when you have a trading partner like the one between Canada and the United States, where Canada it's our largest trading partner, but we're pretty important to the Americans as well. When I count thirty six American states as my top customers, I sell more to them, to those thirty six states than China, ben Japan, than the United Kingdom and friends combined.
So we need to work on this together. That thirty day pores.
You're in talks right now. How confident are you that can be extended, that will be extended.
We are working very hard on that myself, the Prime Minister, my cabinet colleagues. This is a really intentional effort to work with the administration. One of the things that the American that the American administration, including the President, have raised concerns about, is how we can collaborate and do more on boarder to make sure that at the border we are indeed working more together. Despite Canada only having less than one percent of fentannel going into the American Into America,
it too is just as a concern for Canadians. So collaborating together to make sure that we are doing more on our border is what we are doing. And we're confident that that work is not only making progress, but that we're doing that with the Americans. And this is the testament of the Canadian American relationship as well, the ability to talk through and work through what are sometimes really tough issues. So we're committed to doing that on our end.
You talked about how Canada exports more to the US than any other country. We're talking about almost eighty percent of your exports going to the US despite a trade agreement with the likes of the EU. Why has it been so difficult for Canada to diversifies trade.
Well, I always say, as the Trade Minister, negotiating trade agreements are about it's like building a bridge.
But what you want is you need.
Your businesses to walk across that bridge. And I think businesses really are reflecting on the importance of diversification. I think that the meaning of diversification has a more greater significance.
It's why I'm here in Singapore.
I just led a trade mission to Australia, some two hundred over two hundred Canadians that are here looking to pursue opportunities in this market. Here in the Indo Pacific and in Singapore. Who's a partner in the CPTPP. We have been doing business and have seen our trade increase by over twenty percent since it's coming in force into twenty eighteen.
I've taken hundreds and hundreds.
Of businesses on trade missions, whether it is here in Singapore or to Japan, or to Korea, or to Malaysia, to Indonesia. We just wrapped up a free trade agreement with Indonesia. But I think that what the Canadian government has been doing is really building out that deliberate infrastructure to help Canadian companies look at markets like these ones.
This is a really important place for Canada. We launched our Indo Pacific Strategy at the end of twenty twenty two, back by two point three billion dollar investment over five years to do exactly that, grow our businesses, create those partnerships. Yesterday here in Singapore. I announced seven point three billion dollars to build a Canadian trade gateway for nuclear energy. This is really important because in the region, in all of these discussions I've had with partners, energy security is
an issue. These economies are growing and they want to be able to grow with reliable energy in order to grow their businesses, to power their cities and their communities. So we want to be a part of that solution. So these are the kinds of things that we're doing as a government, but we're doing it in partnership with businesses that I would say, and I keep saying to businesses, you've got to.
Show up, You've got to be here. Do these do these.
Transactions because they actually will be great for our trading partners as well as for US.
Minister. We keep getting headlines from Trump, and just today we heard from how he is willing to perhaps rethink that trade deal with China. He says it is a possibility for a new trade agreement with China. It does seem he's approaching China in a very conciliatory way. Instead of sixty percent terrors, is ten percent terrors. Whereas when it comes to a trading partner like Canada, he was
willing to go full force with twenty five percent. Is there a hands a sense perhaps that Trump is trading China in a better way than he is trading Canada.
Well, I can't speak for the president for President Trump, but what I would say for Canada is that you know, Canada, you know, has everything it needs to be successful in today's global economy and into the future. The United States is our largest trading partner. We will continue to work with the United States because it's.
Good for Americans.
I mean, millions and millions of jobs are dependent on America's trade with Canada. The inputs that we send to the United States actually create and have built these resilient supply chains that are good, you know, that are good for businesses, that are good for communities.
I think what we need to keep doing is to do this work.
But Canada also has, through its current trade networks, access to sixty five percent of the world's economy through trade agreements like with the European Union here through the CPTPP with countries like Singapore and Malaysia and Australia and New Zealand and Vietnam and so forth. But also a math the negotiating table with as Yen as a block. I've just concluded agreement, an agreement with Indonesia, really excellent trade agreement there, launched exploratory dialogues with Philippines.
So I think the work.
We need to do and we need to keep doing, is make sure that we continue to strengthen North America on the one hand, but also pursue these opportunities. And in candad that I often say to people, we are the best traders because around the world, because we come from around the world. So these deep people to people ties, I think is also an advantage.
Is there a need for you to have a new trade strategy under the Trump administration? I mean concession stone work. We saw that with India and Ted for Ted is not working either. Is there a way of relooking at your trade strategy?
Well, I let's remember that the agreement we have today with the United States, which we renegotiated with the United States, was actually done by President Trump, and he touted this to be an excellent agreement. It took us time to do that, and there were issues that we had to work through.
But we did work through them.
We negotiated across the table and in President Trump's trade memoranda that he issued to the Commerce Secretary and to the USDR was to take a look at the range of trade agreements you know, that the United States has with the world, including in Canada, and including the work that we are the work that is done between Canada, US and Mexico. I'm looking forward to, you know, to understanding what that analysis will you know, will will come
forward with. But ultimately, I think that at the end of the day, it's about finding the win and the win and the synergies that make America straw, the synergies that make Canada straw, the synergies that make North America strong, and and I think that's the uh, we that's the approach we've taken. We're gonna have to, you know, do that, take that approach and then adapt as we need.
Mind, the wind come from a multi level response instead of Canada just responding on its own. Should that be uh, you know, a global response, let by perhaps Canada asially even Europe. Should that be a multi level approach to responding to Trump's terraces.
Well, I've certainly, you know, been talking to my colleagues around the globe, particularly those who we have trade agreements with and those partners who who really stand up for the rules based trading system. I was in Europe just a little over. I'm losing track of time. I think it's a little over a week or maybe two weeks ago. I was at the World Trade Organization. I'm here, of course, in Singapore, our CPTPP partner. I was just in Australia
and I'm on my way to Brunei. And I think the one thing that is consistent with all of us because in response to our businesses and the investors, they are looking for governments and for those of us who have negotiated these agreements to provide and the predictability that they need. So everyone agrees that standing up for a rules based international order, particularly around trade, is something that
we are going to need to work on together. Each country will do what they will do with respect to unique responses, but I do think that there is agreement that the rules based international order, particularly around rules based trade, is something that we must stand up for and continue to work very hard at defending with.
TRUM reshaping the Global Trade Book. I'm just wondering, from Canada's perspective, is China now a more important trading partner. Is India now a more important trading pot.
Well, our Indo Pacific strategy had set out and this is now well over. You know, at the end of twenty twenty two, we set out a strategy that envisagedes the importance of this region in particular, that also includes how Canada would work with China, and there you know, we refer to it in the.
Strategies the Four Seas.
There will be opportunities where we should absolutely be collaborating together. You think about climate change and how we can build out solutions, including economic solutions that actually will fight climate change. There will be issues where we're going to have to challenge China because the values that are important to Canadians
are such that we need to do that. We can also compete, I mean, take a look at AI, take a look at what Canada is doing in the critical mineral space, take a look at what Canada is doing around the battery ecosystem with respect to batteries around for electric vehicles, and how we're attracting investments from around the globe to do this in Canada. So we can certainly compete,
and then we need to co exists. So the approach that we have taken in the Inno Pacific strategy I think still holds today.
All Right, Menissa, thank you so much for joining us. Perfect day to have you on the show. Mary and Canadian Minister of Export Promotion, International Trade and Economic Development,