Canada eyes Mercosur trade pact to reduce US reliance, minister says
Source: Reuters
Canada eyes Mercosur trade pact to reduce US reliance, minister says
Promit Mukherjee
Thu, July 17, 2025 at 8:21 PM EDT·3 min read
OTTAWA (Reuters) -Canada's International Trade Minister said on Thursday that there was interest from both sides to advance trade talks with South American bloc Mercosur, as Ottawa seeks new deals in a push to diversify from the U.S.
Prime Minister Mark Carney and his team have been locked in talks with U.S. President Donald Trump to hash out a trade deal by August 1, which could help reduce tariffs on Canada.
But his government is also preparing to rely less on a relationship that generated bilateral trade of over C$1 trillion ($727.33 billion) last year and to focus on diversifying trade by signing free trade pacts globally.
"I had conversations with the foreign minister of Brazil, and there is appetite to carry out conversations around Mercosur," Minister Maninder Sidhu said in an interview with Reuters.
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