My family immigrated to Canada when I was a child. Canada is a country of immigrants and it makes the country diverse and interesting. This diversity allows for different experiences and perspectives that can result in more robust solutions to problems. It can also help strengthen economic ties with other countries. Free Trade Agreements allow for lower tariffs (a tax or duty to be paid on a particular class of imports or exports) that encourage trade and leverage other countries’ comparative advantages (technology, natural resources, lower labour costs, cultural knowledge, etc.) to raise standard living for each trading partner. The Government of Canada has negotiated many trade agreements and continues to add new trade agreements that businesses can take advantage of.
Current trade agreements that are in force:
Canada-Chile Free Trade Agreement
Canada-Colombia Free Trade Agreement
Canada-Costa Rice Free Trade Agreement
Canada – Honduras Free Trade Agreement
Canada-Israel Free Trade Agreement (CIFTA)
Canada-Jordan Free Trade Agreement
Canada-Korea Free Trade Agreement (CKFTA)
Canada-Panama Free Trade Agreement
Canada- Peru Free Trade Agreement
Canada-Ukraine Free Trade Agreement (CUFTA)
Trade agreements that include multiple countries:
Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) -Australia, Japan, Mexico, New Zealand, Singapore, Vietnam (not yet in force for Brunei Darussalam, Chile, Malaysia, Peru)
Canada-European Free Trade Association (EFTA) Free Trade Agreement - Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway, Switzerland
Canada-European Union: Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA) - Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovak Republic, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden
Canada-European Union: Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA) - Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovak Republic, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden
Canada-United States-Mexico Agreement (CUSMA)
In addition to negotiated free trade agreements, Canada is also part of the World Trade Organization (WTO). Under the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) the predecessor to WTO, member states may have reduced tariffs under three categories, Most Favoured Nation (MFN), General Preferential (GPT), and Least Developed Country (LDCT). Businesses can choose the lowest tariff rate that the product and country is eligible for. Countries without a Free Trade Agreement and who are not a WTO member are charged a 35% tariff for imported goods into Canada.
Trade is a very complex topic and beyond the scope of a blog. However, it is important to be aware of them as business owners and supply chain professionals because globalization have overly focused on scale and costs in the last 30 or so years. This narrow focus has weakened supply chain resiliency which will take time to rebuild. Diversification of the supply chain is part of the solution and will reduce of risk and strain on supply the chain that we have seen in the last couple years.