Elbows up, again: a US-Canada trade flare-up

About this episode

<p><br></p><p>Promising trade talks imploded after a literal 11th-hour change from the American side. We examine the new trade barriers being erected, and <a href="https://www.economist.com/the-americas/2026/08/23/the-costs-of-defying-donald-trump-are-mounting-for-canada?utm_campaign=a.io&utm_medium=audio.podcast.np&utm_source=theintelligence&utm_content=discovery.content.anonymous.tr_shownotes_na-na_article&utm_term=sa.listeners" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">the complex calculation</a> for Prime Minister Mark Carney. In Japan Gen X workers are even still <a href="https://www.economist.com/asia/2026/08/18/japans-gen-x-workers-are-struggling?utm_campaign=a.io&utm_medium=audio.podcast.np&utm_source=theintelligence&utm_content=discovery.content.anonymous.tr_shownotes_na-na_article&utm_term=sa.listeners" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">bearing the costs</a> of an economic bubble-burst from the 1990s. And how fates of civilisations have turned on <a href="https://www.economist.com/international/2026/07/31/the-war-room-newsletter-the-most-significant-sieges-in-history?utm_campaign=a.io&utm_medium=audio.podcast.np&utm_source=theintelligence&utm_content=discovery.content.anonymous.tr_shownotes_na-na_article&utm_term=sa.listeners" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">sieges throughout history</a>. </p><br><p>Guests and host:</p><p><br></p><ul><li>Hal Hodson, Americas editor</li><li>Moeka Iida, East Asia reporter</li><li>Richard Cockett, senior digital editor</li><li>Jason Palmer, co-host of “The Intelligence”</li></ul><p><br></p><p>Topics covered: </p><p><br></p><ul><li>Canada, the United States, tariffs, Mark Carney, trade war</li><li>Japan, Gen X, labour market</li><li>sieges, world history</li></ul><p><br></p><p><em>Listen to what matters most, from global politics and business to science and technology—</em><a href="https://subscribenow.economist.com/podcasts-plus" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>subscribe to The Economist</em></a><em>.</em></p><br><p><strong><em>Correction (August 26th)</em></strong><em>: We originally published a version of this podcast stated that Japan's bubble era spanned the 1970s and 1980s. It was only the 1980s. Apologies for the error.</em></p> <hr><p style='color:grey; font-size:0.75em;'> Hosted on Acast. See <a style='color:grey;' target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer' href='https://acast.com/privacy'>acast.com/privacy</a> for more information.</p>