Pause for effect – Canada is figuring out what to do while the tariff threat from the U.S. is on hold. It’s still a full-court press of lobbying the Trump administration to remove the threat entirely. One of the things Canada is doing – naming a so-called fentanyl czar to combat drug trafficking. Less than one per cent of fentanyl that gets into the U.S. comes from Canada. But the cost of combatting it pales in comparison to the potential economic harm of tariffs.
And: U.S. president Donald Trump says reconstruction of Gaza will take years, and Palestinians will need to find somewhere else to live and call home. Trump’s comments are on the same day he met with Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu at the White House.
Also: Another way to mitigate the damage - better interprovincial trade. That could reduce reliance on the U.S. market. It could eventually boost Canada’s GDP by $200 billion. But it won’t be easy – one Nova Scotia medical equipment maker points out it is currently easier to sell products overseas, than to customers in other provinces.
Plus: China retaliates against U.S. tariffs, ten dead in mass shooting in Sweden, ebola outbreak, and more.