Canadian Prime Minister Discusses Capping Chinese Electric Vehicle Imports with U.S. President

Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney was caught assuring President Donald Trump that Canada would limit imports of Chinese electric vehicles. This conversation occurred during the Group of Seven (G7) summit held in Évian-les-Bains, France.

In the footage, Carney spoke in a low voice to Trump, with both leaders seated. He mentioned the term ‘cap’ while gesturing horizontally. Carney clarified, “Less than 3 percent of our market—49,000 cars,” referring to Canada’s agreement with China. He added, “I thought you’d like that.” Trump responded affirmatively, saying, “That’s good, I like that.”

Newsweek contacted the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative for a comment on the matter. The discussion took place on Tuesday during the G7 summit, where leaders from France, Italy, Germany, Japan, and the United Kingdom were present.

Earlier this year, Carney traveled to Beijing to negotiate deals with China, partly due to concerns over U.S. trade policies following Trump’s implementation of significant tariffs last year. Despite threats from Trump to impose a 100 percent tariff on Canadian goods if Carney pursued a trade agreement with China, Carney proceeded with an arrangement to import Chinese electric vehicles.

Though China did not have representation at the summit, it was a central topic among G7 leaders. Concerns were raised about China’s state subsidies and industrial policies which are seen as contributing to global economic imbalances.

During his visit to Beijing, Carney announced a deal allowing up to 49,000 Chinese electric vehicles to enter the Canadian market at a 6.1 percent tariff rate, down from the previous 100 percent duty set in 2024. In return, China agreed to reduce retaliatory tariffs on Canadian canola from 85 percent to approximately 15 percent.

In recent months, efforts have been made to ease trade tensions between the U.S. and China. This led to Trump’s visit to Beijing and an invitation for Chinese leader Xi Jinping to visit the United States in September.