Foreign Affairs Minister Anita Anand on Thursday said her team is “still hopeful” Canada will reach a trade deal with the US by July 21.Prime Minister Mark Carney and President Donald Trump set the target at the G7 summit in Kananaskis in June. Immediately after, however, the Carney Liberals announced they planned to move forward on the Digital Sales Tax — which, with its retroactive application, would hand over a $3 billion bill to US tech companies with a June 30 deadline.After strongly worded pushback from the president, Carney revoked the tax, and the two leaders once again agreed to pursue a new trade deal.“Our teams are working extremely hard behind closed doors in a complex negotiation. This is an effort we are putting all our weight behind,” Anand told reporters Thursday, after being asked if the July 21 deal would be reached.“I will say that we are still hopeful that an agreement can be achieved indeed.”.As the trade target looms, Anand is at the ASEAN summit in Malaysia, where multiple deals between Canada and Asian countries have been launched in efforts to diversify trade while US talks remain unpredictable.Anand said she plans to maintain a multilateral trade relationship with the 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations, and emphasized her belief the Indo-Pacific region will fuel the global economy in the coming years.“The work is being done with alacrity to finalize the text of the free trade agreement,” Anand told Reuters in an interview.“It is complex but we are very much looking forward to it being completed as soon as possible.” She did not elaborate.“Our trade negotiators... are engaged in the complex trade negotiations to ensure that Canada’s interests are put forward in the best possible way.”
