Washington | Reuters — The United States and China announced an initial trade deal on Wednesday that will roll back some tariffs and boost Chinese purchases of U.S. goods and services, defusing an 18-month conflict between the world’s two largest economies. Beijing and Washington have portrayed their “Phase One” agreement as a momentous step after […] Read more
U.S., China reset trade relationship with Phase One agreement
Deere bets on cost cuts, services push to boost profits
Chicago | Reuters — Deere and Co. on Wednesday said it will cut costs and ramp up investment in data-driven agriculture technology and its services business to make itself more profitable. In a pitch to investors, CEO John May said the measures are expected to boost operating profit margin to 15 per cent by 2022 […] Read more
Fraser: Bibeau buying time, BRM not a federal priority
The federal government is buying time when it comes to making drastic improvements to AgriStability and other business risk management (BRM) programs. Federal Agriculture Minister Marie-Claude Bibeau recently announced minor, cost-free tweaks to AgriStability, during the same week the public was given an updated look at Canada’s fiscal situation. That update shows the Liberal government’s […] Read more
U.S.-China deal should secure Canadians’ release, Trudeau says
Ottawa | Reuters — Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said on Thursday that the U.S. government should not finalize a trade deal with China unless the pact also secured the release of two Canadians detained by Beijing. The two men were picked up separately in December 2018, shortly after police in Vancouver held Huawei Technologies […] Read more
U.S. House passes CUSMA
Washington | Reuters — The U.S. House of Representatives on Thursday backed a new trade agreement with neighbouring Mexico and Canada in a 385-41 bipartisan vote, sending the NAFTA replacement measure to the Senate for consideration early in 2020. Democrats, who control the House, approved the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (CUSMA) more than a year after […] Read more
Central Ontario MP named parliamentary ag secretary
A former Belleville, Ont. mayor will now play a backup role to the federal agriculture minister in the House of Commons. Neil Ellis, the Liberal MP for the Bay of Quinte constituency in central Ontario since 2015, was named Thursday as parliamentary secretary for the minister of agriculture and agri-food, Marie-Claude Bibeau. Ellis was a […] Read more
Canada could be last to ratify CUSMA deal, Trudeau says
Ottawa | Reuters — Canada could be the last of the three North American countries to ratify a new trade deal, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said on Tuesday, indicating that his plan to match the U.S. timetable was set to fail. Trudeau’s Liberal government said from the start it wanted to work in tandem with […] Read more
Ford recalls Super Duty pickups on post-crash fire risk
Reuters — Ford Motor Co. said Friday it would recall 547,538 of its Ford Super Duty pickup trucks across the U.S., Canada and Mexico, citing the risk of a post-crash interior fire. The second-largest U.S. automaker said the recall covers certain models between the years 2017 and 2019 with carpet flooring that could experience a […] Read more
Farmers hit by trade disputes should be helped faster, Trudeau says
Ottawa | Reuters — Canada’s agriculture department should move more quickly to help farmers harmed by protectionist measures imposed by other nations, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said Friday. Canadian farmers are caught up in a trade and diplomatic dispute between Ottawa and Beijing. In a formal letter of instruction to Agriculture Minister Marie-Claude Bibeau, Trudeau […] Read more
NFU paper lays out solutions for climate, farming challenges
MarketsFarm — The global climate crisis is interlinked with the financial crisis on Canadian farms, according to a new discussion paper from the National Farmers Union (NFU). The paper proposes changes to agriculture practices that could help the sector become part of the solution to both major issues. Compiled by Darrin Qualman in collaboration with […] Read more