Worried Canada presses U.S. over Buy America steel plan: sources [View all]
Source: Reuters
Tue Mar 21, 2017 | 10:58am EDT
By David Ljunggren | OTTAWA
Canada's government, under pressure from domestic steel firms, is expressing concern to U.S. officials about a proposed Buy America policy that could cause heavy Canadian job losses, people familiar with the discussions told Reuters.
U.S. President Donald Trump, who wants firms to "Buy American and hire American," pledged in January to require new pipelines to use U.S.-made steel. Canadian steel firms fear Trump's plan could badly hurt a highly-integrated North American industry, and are pressing Ottawa to take action, the people added.
Canadian Foreign Minister Chrystia Freeland raised the issue with U.S. Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross in their first conversation on March 9 and underscored worries about potential job losses, said a source familiar with the matter.
A statement issued after the meeting merely said that Freeland had highlighted "the mutual benefits of the integrated Canada-U.S. steel industry" but made no mention of the conversation about job losses.
Read more: http://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-nafta-canada-steel-idUSKBN16S1U0?il=0