Ontario Premier Doug Ford lauded his Thursday meeting with Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick as “positive” and “productive” after their public rift over tariffs on imported goods.
“We shared a tremendous amount of views back and forth, and I’m feeling very positive,” Ford told reporters outside the U.S. Department of Commerce building.
“I just look forward to reaching out again next week, but this, I can honestly say, was the best meeting I’ve ever had coming down here,” he added.
The two are slated to meet again next week.
“Now keep in mind, Secretary Lutnick is a perceived businessman, a shrewd negotiator, and he’s doing what’s right for his country, and I’m doing what’s right from my province, and in turn our country,” the premier said, noting the U.S. has not agreed to call off or alter current tariffs on imports from the Great White North.
Ford has notably been a vocal advocate for Canada’s retaliation efforts against President Trump’s tariffs on steel and aluminum imports.
The Ontario Premier briefly vowed to impose a 25 percent surcharge on electricity for three states last week but backed off from the effort after Trump threatened to heighten levies on the nation during his April 2 announcement of reciprocal tariffs.
The Dow Jones and S&P 500 have tumbled as a result of the turbulent trade war which has caused a wave of uncertainty for companies, investors and consumers alike.
Trump has previously suggested that Canada should “become the 51st state,” but Mark Carney, the soon-to-be prime minister of the U.S.’s neighbor to the north, said Sunday that “Canada never, ever will be part of America in any way, shape or form.”
Lutnick has also echoed Trump’s comments about Canada becoming a U.S. state and merging the two nation’s economies.
