Mark Carney is governing through paradox(悖论，自相矛盾的事物). Canada’s largest trading partner, the United States, is led by an unreliable man who uses trade barriers as a weapon. For Canada, the diversification(多样化，多元化) of trade partners is wise, but takes time. Building infrastructure needed to serve new markets requires significant investment. And yet little would do more to get that investment flowing than a trade deal with the United States.(然而，没有什么比与美国达成贸易协议更能促进这些投资的流动。)
马克·卡尼正在悖论中执政。加拿大最大的贸易伙伴美国，由一个不可靠的人领导，他把贸易壁垒当作武器。对加拿大而言，贸易伙伴多元化是明智之举，但需要时间。建设服务新市场所需的基础设施需要大量投资。然而，没有什么比与美国达成贸易协议更能促进这些投资的流动。
The pursuit of such a deal has pushed both countries to the brink of(濒临，处于...边缘) a full-blown(全面的，充分发展的) trade war. Minutes before midnight on August 21st, two days after Donald Trump said that “a very good deal for both parties” was all but(几乎，差不多) done, Canada’s prime minister abandoned(放弃，抛弃) the talks, allowing fresh tariffs of up to 50% to come into force on 5% of Canadian exports to the United States, worth $20bn. Mr Trump’s price for normal trade relations was too high. “Our goal has been to secure the best deal for Canadians,” Mr Carney said on August 22nd. “Never a deal at any price(不惜任何代价).”
追求这样的协议已将两国推至全面贸易战的边缘。8月21日午夜前几分钟，在唐纳德·特朗普表示“对双方都非常好的协议”几乎达成两天后，加拿大总理放弃了谈判，允许对加拿大对美出口的5%（价值200亿美元）征收高达50%的新关税。特朗普对正常贸易关系要价太高。“我们的目标一直是为加拿大人争取最好的协议，”卡尼在8月22日表示，“绝不以任何价格达成协议。”
And so on August 25th Canada matched(匹配，相称) the new American tariffs with levies(征收额，税款) of its own on some $20bn of American exports, with implementation delayed until September 8th. Support for Mr Carney’s decision to walk away(离开，退出) is widespread(广泛的，普遍的) in Canada. A survey by the Angus Reid Institute, a pollster, suggests that 76% of Canadians back the move. The political risk that comes with signing a trade deal Canadians cannot stomach(忍受，容忍) is far higher than that from Mr Trump’s tariffs.
于是，8月25日，加拿大对美国约200亿美元的出口商品征收了自己的关税，以匹配美国的新关税，实施时间推迟到9月8日。卡尼退出谈判的决定在加拿大得到广泛支持。民调机构安格斯·里德研究所的一项调查显示，76%的加拿大人支持这一举动。签署一份加拿大人无法接受的贸易协议所带来的政治风险，远高于特朗普关税带来的风险。
Pain for all
人人痛苦