1. Why does Canada have import tariffs and quotas for dairy, poultry, and eggs?

2. Why are free trade agreements important to consumers? 

3. The TPP involves 12 countries across 4 continents. As organizations become globalize across these countries, what can the organizations do increase the chances for successful international assignments?

In January 2016, the Canadian government confirmed that (subject to ratification) it would join the Trans Pacific Partnership (TPP), a proposed free-trade agreement between 12 member nations spanning the Pacific Ocean, including Australia, Canada, Chile, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Peru, Singapore, the United States, and Vietnam. These countries cover four continents, and combined are responsible for more than $28.5 trillion dollars’ worth of GDP, more than 40 percent of global economic output, making the TPP the largest trade agreement ever proposed. More than 800 million people will be affected by this agreement.

The TPP will eliminate or reduce tariffs on a wide range of goods and services among member nations, and will have massive impacts on three heavily protected Canadian industries: vehicle manufacturing, dairy farming, and drug manufacturing. Members of these industries are understandably against the TPP and the changes it will surely bring.

Under current NAFTA legislation, auto manufacturers must ensure that 62.5 percent of a vehicle’s auto parts come from North America. Under the TPP vehicles, produced in Canada will have to ensure only that 45 percent of the value of the vehicle is based on parts made in member nations to avoid tariffs. Canada will also eliminate a 6.1 percent tariff on vehicles imported from Japan over the next five years. Unifor, Canada’s auto workers’ union, has warned that this change will eliminate jobs (though they have failed to substantiate this claim, as economists argue that the new lower levels will increase Canada’s exports).