Lutnick Criticizes Canada's Trade Strategy Ahead of USMCA Review

U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick sharply criticized Canada's trade strategy on Friday, calling it the worst he has ever heard and declaring that Canada "sucks," as tensions rise ahead of upcoming reviews of the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement.

Speaking at the Semafor World Economy summit in Washington, D.C., Lutnick responded to recent comments by Steve Verheul, Canada's former chief trade negotiator during the first Trump administration. Verheul had suggested that time favored Canada in ongoing talks due to mounting pressures on the U.S. Lutnick dismissed this approach, emphasizing the U.S. economy's scale as a 30 trillion dollar powerhouse and the world's primary consumer market. He also targeted Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney, accusing him of mishandling relations by pursuing closer ties with China, an export-driven economy unlikely to boost Canadian exports. "He gets on a plane and he goes to China," Lutnick said. "Does he think China... is going to buy his stuff? ... He came back and said, well take their electric cars. I mean, is this nuts?"

Lutnick further indicated that President Donald Trump views the USMCA, which replaced NAFTA in 2020, as a flawed...