Moving beyond China and Mexico, Trump targets Canada trade

The two countries are suddenly sparring openly over inexpensive Canadian timber and Canada's barriers to U.S. dairy products — disputes that go back years but rarely get such a public airing.

Hours earlier, his Commerce Department had announced plans to impose duties averaging 20 percent on softwood lumber imports from Canada.

The duties on Canadian lumber imports are "a pretty hard blow," Gary Hufbauer, senior fellow at the Peterson Institute for International Economics, said of the lumber sanctions.

[...] the tensions are surprising.

[...] Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross this week announced duties ranging from 3 percent to 24 percent on softwood lumber imports, arguing that Canada unfairly subsidizes its industry.

Ottawa shields its dairy farmers from foreign competition, regulating prices and production and taxing imports heavily.

Laura Dawson, director of the Canada Institute at the Wilson Center think tank in Washington, says it's not surprising that Trump would spotlight the issue: "Focusing on dairy while you're giving a speech in Wisconsin — why would you not play to the audience there?"

Dawson, a former economic adviser to the U.S. embassy in Ottawa, says she suspects "the current drama will be forgotten" after U.S. and Canadian negotiators get down to working out compromises.

"There are millions of good U.S. jobs that depend on the smooth flow of goods, services and people back and forth across our border," Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said during a news conference.