US Treasury Secretary Says Canada Can’t Become ‘Opening’ for ‘Cheap’ Chinese Goods

“We can’t let Canada become an opening [for] the Chinese to pour their cheap goods into the U.S.,” he said.

U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent speaks onstage at Lincoln Center in New York City, on Dec. 3, 2025. David Dee Delgado/Getty Images for The New York Times

U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent criticized Canada for opening the door to Chinese electric vehicles, saying it would lead to “cheap goods” entering the United States as well.

Bessent said Prime Minister Mark Carney’s decision to drop industry-specific tariffs on electric vehicles (EVs) from China after meeting with Chinese leader Xi Jinping earlier this month did not bode well for renegotiation of the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA), set to begin on July 1.