Wall Street Journal (June 4)
Despite the “unanimous concern and disappointment” expressed in a statement by G7 members Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan and the UK, ”the Trump administration showed no sign of backing down from restrictive tariffs” or provided any indication “that the administration was wary of inching closer to a trade war.”
Tags: Canada, Concern, Disappointment, France, G7, Germany, Italy, Japan, Tariffs, Trade war, Trump, UK, Unanimous
Washington Examiner (June 1)
“With President Trump’s incredibly foolhardy decision Thursday to impose tariffs on steel and aluminum from Canada, Mexico, and the European Union, the probability grows of an economic crash this fall.”
Toronto Sun (November 27)
“It’s an odd notion: Canada works with Cuba to get them to work with North Korea to get them, in turn, to work with the United States on cooling their nuclear ambitions. But it’s a worthwhile approach… While there’s not a whole lot Canada can do, it’s good that Trudeau’s serious about at least doing what we can.”
Tags: Canada, Cuba, North Korea, Trudeau, U.S., Worthwhile
Toronto Star (June 26)
“A deep national revulsion toward President Donald Trump has sent Canadians’ opinions of the United States plummeting to a level of antipathy never before seen.” The decline is particularly steep when compared with “the final year of Democrat Barack Obama’s presidency, when Pew found 65 per cent of Canadians favourably disposed to the U.S.” The figure has dropped to 43 per cent. Equally stunning, “under Obama last year, 83 per cent of Canadians had confidence in the president to do the right thing in world affairs. Under Trump this year, it is a mere 22 per cent.”
Bloomberg (February 16)
“Sleep deprivation is doing more harm in Japan than just making people grumpy and unhealthy. It is also holding back the world’s third-largest economy,” creating an economic drag of nearly $140 billion or roughly 2.9% of GDP. This is a much larger GDP slice than Canada (1.35%), Germany (1.56%), the UK (1.86%) or the U.S. (2.28%) lose to sleep deprivation. Moreover, periodic surveys by the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare, show the number of people averaging less than 6 hours of sleep per night has risen by about 10% since 2007 to nearly 40% of Japan’s population.
The Economist (January 21)
“Negotiating free-trade agreements will be harder and more time-consuming than Mrs May suggests.” Reaching a comprehensive deal in two years is unrealistic. “Canada’s free-trade deal with the EU has taken seven years and is not yet in force. For Britain to replicate the EU’s trade deals with 53 third countries will be more testing” and ratification remains “tricky,” requiring approval by every parliament in the EU.”
Tags: Approval, Canada, EU, Free-trade agreements, May, Negotiations, Ratification, UK, Unrealistic
Washington Post (December 12)
Can Canada, “a nation so multicultural and immigrant-heavy (Canada ties with Germany for the G8’s highest per-capita immigration rate) hope to escape the racial and religious tensions that have consumed Europe and the United States?” While the consensus says yes, there are some concerning rumblings.
Tags: Canada, Europe, G8, Germany, Immigrants, Multicultural, Tension, U.S.
The Economist (October 29)
“Irredeemably dull by reputation, less brash and bellicose than America, Canada has long seemed to outsiders to be a citadel of decency, tolerance and good sense.” Especially now, “in this depressing company of wall-builders, door-slammers and drawbridge-raisers, Canada stands out as a heartening exception,” both in terms of immigration and free trade.
Tags: Canada, Decency, Dull, Free trade, Immigration, Tolerance, U.S.
The Economist (October 22)
“Twentieth-century trade deals slashed tariffs. Newer ones between rich countries, such as CETA, focus on cutting other barriers to trade.” It took seven years to hammer out the Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA), a trade deal that would eliminate duplicative safety checks, as well as about 99% of customs duties between the Canada and the EU. But gaining final approval of any trade deal is increasingly difficult. Last week, the regional parliament of Wallonia blocked the deal, which was estimated to “make Europe €5.8 billion a year richer.”
Tags: Barriers, Canada, CETA, Customs, Duplicative, Duties, Europe, Parliament, Safety checks, Tariffs, Trade deals, Wallonia
The Economist (September 10)
“New techniques mean that wood can now be used for much taller buildings,” potentially reducing the carbon footprint by nearly 75% compared with conventional steel and concrete structures. A 14-story wooden structure in Bergen, Norway will soon be unseated as the world’s tallest when an 18-story wooden dormitory goes up at the University of British Columbia in Canada in 2017. But UBC’s Brock Commons will soon be surpassed by a 21-story building in Amsterdam. “Some architects have even started designing wooden skyscrapers, like the proposed Tratoppen…a 40-floor residential tower on the drawing-board in Stockholm.”
Tags: Amsterdam, Architects, Buildings, Canada, Carbon footprint, Concrete, Norway, Skyscrapers, Steel, Stockholm, Structures, Tratoppen, UBC, Wood
