free trade
Got Milk? Dairy haulers concerned about supply management changes
MONTREAL, Que. -- No matter where milk is hauled, questions are being raised about the future of the supply management model that governs how much dairy is produced and processed in Canada. Any changes would have a direct impact on truck shipments between farms and processors.
Equipment manufacturers grapple with ‘new normal’ in trade
TORONTO, Ont. – Rona Ambrose didn’t have many comforting words for members of the Canadian Transportation Equipment Association (CTEA). Offering a keynote address during the association’s annual meeting, the advisor in recent NAFTA negotiations promised more trade uncertainty to come.
NAFTA deal still in question
TORONTO, ON – The future of NAFTA remains uncertain as negotiators prepare for their latest round of meetings, this time in Montreal. Months into discussions, nobody even knows if U.S. President Donald Trump will decide to outright scrap the deal that governs every load of cross-border freight. With about 10 million trucks crossing between Canada and the U.S. each year, there is plenty of business at stake. A recent survey by Export Development Canada even found that 26% of exporters would shift their business to the U.S. if the agreement was revoked outright. Trade between the U.S. and Canada tripled between 1986 and 2017, Canadian International Freight Forwarders Association executive director Ruth Snowden observed, during a January 17 seminar hosted by the Fernandes Hearn law firm in Toronto. “If [NAFTA] goes, it could be very significant.”
Mulroney talks trade, leadership at OTA
TORONTO, ON - Former Prime Minister Brian Mulroney brought a message about the importance of leadership and free trade to fleet executives in Toronto today, at a time when the trade agreements he championed are being challenged and renegotiated. In a speech to the Ontario Trucking Association's annual meeting, Mulroney referred to NAFTA discussions as "the most important international negotiations in modern history" for Canada, the U.S. and Mexico. And he drew on a series of statistics to prove his point about the value of trade. "The statistics alone speak to the success of the (Canada-U.S.) Free Trade Agreement," he said, noting how trade between the countries has tripled since 1989. "With less than 7% of the world's population, NAFTA produces 29% of the world's wealth." While U.S. President Donald Trump has referred to NAFTA as a terrible deal, Mulroney stressed that our southern neighbors have "done extremely well", referring to the U.S. unemployment rate of 4.1% as an example.
Trump vows “America first” approach to trade
WASHINGTON, DC - Canada's largest trading partner has inaugurated a president who pledges "America first" policies on everything from trade to security. "From this day forward, it's going to be only America first. America first. Every decision on trade, on taxes, on immigration, on foreign affairs will be made to benefit American workers and American families," U.S. President Donald Trump said in his inaugural address on Friday. "We must protect our borders from the ravages of other countries making our products, stealing our companies and destroying our jobs."We will bring back our jobs. We will bring back our borders. We will bring back our wealth and we will bring back our dreams," he added.
Truck numbers bottoming out, but has the economy?
LAS VEGAS, NV - Several indicators suggest that the U.S. trucking industry is approaching the end of an economic downturn. But broader economic growth is still being slowed by uncertainty around the U.S. election -- and the global rise in populism, nationalism and isolationism, a leading U.S. economist says.