Canadian Prime Minister’s Hot Mic Moment on Limiting Chinese Electric Vehicle Imports

Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney was unintentionally recorded during a conversation with President Donald Trump, revealing Canada’s plan to limit imports of Chinese electric vehicles. This occurred at the Group of Seven (G7) summit held in Évian-les-Bains, France.

In the footage, Carney is seen speaking softly to Trump. Carney mentioned capping imports while making a horizontal gesture with his hand. He specified, “Less than 3 percent of our market—49,000 cars,” reaffirming Canada’s agreement with China. Carney expressed to Trump, “I thought you’d like that.” Trump responded positively, saying, “That’s good, I like that.”

Newsweek contacted the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative for their comments on this exchange.

The G7 meeting took place near Lake Geneva, with leaders from France, Italy, Germany, Japan, and the United Kingdom attending. Despite not being present, China was a major topic during discussions among G7 members who raised issues about China’s industrial policies and state subsidies, which are perceived to cause economic imbalances globally.

Earlier in January, Carney visited Beijing to finalize various agreements with China. This came as a response to heightened concerns about trading relations with the U.S. following the significant tariffs imposed by Trump the previous year. During negotiations, Carney pursued an agreement that involved importing Chinese electric vehicles, despite threats from Trump to impose a 100 percent tariff on Canadian goods if such a deal was struck.

Carney’s visit to Beijing resulted in a deal allowing 49,000 Chinese electric vehicles into Canada at a most-favored-nation tariff rate of 6.1 percent, reduced from the hefty 100 percent rate in 2024. In return, China agreed to lower its tariffs on Canadian canola from 85 percent to approximately 15 percent.

In recent months, both the U.S. and China have been working to reduce trade tensions. Significant progress was highlighted by Trump’s visit to Beijing and the invitation for Chinese leader Xi Jinping to visit the United States in September.