Canada faces pressure as US says trade talks show little progress

Trade negotiations between the United States and Canada remain stalled despite recent concessions by the Canadian government, according to US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer.

Speaking at the Aspen Security Forum, Greer said there had not been “a lot” of progress in bilateral talks, despite Canada withdrawing its Digital Services Tax and rolling back the Online Streaming Act.

“They had an Online Streaming Act where they wanted to force American companies to fund Canadian companies that they rolled back,” Greer said.

“I’m glad they did that, but they don’t really get credit for doing something bad and then undoing it.”

Greer also said formal negotiations to renew the US-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) have not yet begun between Washington and Ottawa, although discussions with Mexico were progressing well.

“I’ve given lots of proposals to the Canadians on things that could be done immediately to put us in a better position”, he added.

Greer said any significant breakthrough would likely depend on an agreement between President Donald Trump and Prime Minister Mark Carney.

“If the president [and] Prime Minister Carney have an understanding, I’m sure we can put together something that makes sense to get us over the hump,” he said.

The Trump administration continues to focus on reducing the US trade deficit with Canada, despite official data showing the deficit fell by 25 per cent between 2024 and 2025.