Editorials & Other Articles

1. Canada has throttled exports of potash, an essential agricultural fertilizer, to the US. Potash, the key resource containing the element potassium, is needed by US agriculture to the tune of 800 MILLION tons per year. The US is currently capable of annually mining only a few percent of that total. While a mine is rapidly being developed in Michigan, it will be capable of producing on a few tens of million tons per year. There are few other sources of potash, primarily Russia and Belarus, both of which are currently under trade sanctions. US agriculture simply cannot function without a large importation of potash… from Canada.
2. Copper. Canada is one of our major suppliers of this vital metal, essential for a variety of industries. Again, the US produces very little compared to its annual useage (I don’t have any supporting numbers, sorry). Throttling back the supply exported to the US will hurt our economy in several ways. And raise prices markedly.

TSF wants to think that Canada has little leverage in bargaining over trade deals, but that simply isn’t the case. They have him by the balls and are squeezing.