As we watch the American election drama unfold, Canadians are generally positive in their view of Joe Biden’s candidacy and the prospects of the defeat of Donald Trump in November. Mr. Trump has been unpleasantly aggressive in dealing with Canada, not only on trade but regarding the broader political relationship, as well.
Mr. Trump described NAFTA – negotiated by a previous Republican administration – as the worst trade deal ever, claiming Canada had been ripping off the U.S. for decades. The trade renegotiations with the Trump team were tough and unpleasant. Most recently, Mr. Trump reapplied import surcharges on Canadian aluminum, citing concerns about national security. There were those personal insults directed at the Prime…
Ce n’est pas demain la veille qu’on redressera les finances publiques, mais il n’est pas trop tôt pour y réfléchir, pour amorcer la nécessaire conversation sur la pertinence de ce redressement et les meilleurs moyens d’y parvenir.
À ce sujet, on suivra avec intérêt le symposium que tiendra la semaine prochaine la Chaire en fiscalité et en finances publiques de l’Université de Sherbrooke. Aujourd’hui, je propose quelques repères pour le débat. Mes chiffres sont tirés du bilan de la fiscalité publié par la même chaire de recherche, que dirige Luc Godbout*.
Du côté des dépenses, le premier défi est de sevrer les individus, les entreprises et l’économie en général des mesures déployées pendant la crise, en orchestrant un…
Media reports last month signalled a stand-down in trade battles between the United States and China, ostensibly because both are increasingly focused on other geopolitical disputes, over such things as espionage, human rights and intellectual property. By contrast, U.S.-China trade seemed to be emerging “as an area of calm.” I wouldn’t be so sanguine.
For decades, it was taken for granted that fixed tariff rates, agreed to under the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) and later the World Trade Organization (WTO), were pretty much sacrosanct. Governments made formal commitments not to increase their duty rates, meaning in trade parlance that these rates were “bound.” This stabilized the global trading system and was one…
