Prime Minister Trudeau to host Canada-U.S. economic summit in Toronto

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau will host a Canada-U.S. economic summit in Toronto Friday to potentially rebuild relations.

This is days after President Donald Trump said he would hold off on his threatened tariffs against Canada for a month.

The Prime Minister’s Office says the event will assemble Canadian trade and business leaders, along with organized labour, to discuss strategies to grow the economy, break down internal trade barriers and diversify exports.

It will also feature members of the council on Canada-U.S. Relations, which is advising Trudeau on bilateral relations and Trump’s tariff threat.

A release from the Prime Minister’s Office Wednesday morning quoted Trudeau saying, “the Canada-U.S. Economic Summit is Team Canada at its best.”

“We are bringing together partners across business, civil society, and organized labour to find ways to galvanize our economy, create more jobs and bigger paycheques, make it easier to build and trade within our borders, and diversify export markets,” reads the release.

Trump signed an executive order on Saturday to levy 25 per cent tariffs against Canada, with a lower 10 per cent tariff on Canadian energy.

Canada had prepared a retaliatory package, but then a Monday call between Trump and Trudeau temporarily averted the crisis.

Experts have raised concerns that the trade uncertainty will make Canada a less desirable place to invest than the U.S.

With files from The Canadian Press. 

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