Will China and Canada ease their tariffs? What’s at stake in Carney visit

Prime Minister Mark Carney's visit to China is raising questions about whether some tariffs between Beijing and Ottawa could soon ease in what one expert is calling a 'test.'

With U.S. President Donald Trump’s tariffs forcing Canada to seek other trading partners, Prime Minister Mark Carney’s visit to China is raising questions about whether some tariffs between Beijing and Ottawa could soon ease in what one expert is calling a “test” for where relations may go.

Canada’s rocky relationship with China has spanned several years, and pre-dates the global trade war sparked by Trump’s tariffs.

But recent diplomatic tension, including the arbitrary detention of two Canadians as well as the executions last year of four Canadians by Beijing, coupled with pressure from the U.S. for allies to crack down on trade with China have spurred rounds of tariffs between Canada and China covering industries like agriculture and electric vehicles.

Carney’s trip comes just days after an Ipsos poll done exclusively for Global News  found 54 per cent of Canadians support closer trade ties and economic agreements with China.

“This visit by Carney to China is also a test. It’s very sensitive. It’s to test the Canadian public, also to test the U.S. reaction,” says Howard Lin, a professor emeritus and the founding director of the Canada-China Institute for Business and Development at Toronto Metropolitan University.

Some experts suggest that these meetings are a strategy by Carney to add pressure on Trump to come to the bargaining table and renew or negotiate an alternative to the Canada-United States-Mexico Trade Agreement (CUSMA), which is up for renegotiation this year.

Trump said earlier this week “it wouldn’t matter to me” if the current trade deal were to expire.

Here’s a look at where things stand ahead of Carney’s meetings with Chinese leaders.