By ROB GILLIES<\/p>\n
TORONTO (AP) \u2014 Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney said Saturday that he had a lengthy conversation with U.S. President Donald Trump and senior administration officials before leaving for Europe and Asia and that the two countries are making progress toward a trade deal<\/a> after negotiations collapsed in August.<\/p>\n The comments came as Carney announced that Canada had substantially concluded free-trade negotiations with the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, a bloc of nearly 700 million people, and completed separate negotiations with the Philippines.<\/a> Both agreements are part of Canada\u2019s efforts to reduce its dependence on the United States during Trump\u2019s trade war.<\/p>\n Carney was in the Philippine capital ahead of a key three-day summit of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations<\/a> and their Asian and Western counterparts that starts Sunday.<\/p>\n \u201cI had quite a long, substantive conversation with President Trump just before leaving for this trip,\u201d Carney told reporters in Manila. \u201cWe are making progress. There is the possibility of a deal, a bilateral deal. But we\u2019re not yet there.\u201d<\/p>\n Carney said U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer and Trump\u2019s new White House chief of staff, Stephen Miller, also participated in the call.<\/p>\n Carney said Canada would not accept a deal that undermines its auto industry, which has been battered by Trump\u2019s tariffs.<\/p>\n Canada suspended trade negotiations in August<\/a> after last-minute U.S. demands that Ottawa considered unacceptable. Washington subsequently imposed 50% tariffs on about $20 billion in Canadian goods, prompting retaliatory Canadian tariffs in September. The countries have since resumed discussions.<\/p>\n Canada and the United States have one of the world\u2019s largest trading relationships. A trade deal could reduce some tariffs on key sectors, including steel and aluminum.<\/p>\n