Trade war: Before taking on China, here're some lessons US needs to learn

As in the Canadian example, only about a fifth of Chinese exports go to the US, equivalent to about 3.5 per cent of its gross domestic product

Imagine if Canada decided to bring the US to heel over its abusive trade practices.

Losing patience over its disputes about lumber, sugar, steel, aluminum and anti-dumping processes, Ottawa could instead institute a 25% tariff on all imports from south of the border.

Such a notion seems absurd. How could a small economy like Canada cause the US to change its trade practices by force? Less than a fifth of US exports head north, so Canada alone lacks the scale to bend the US to its will.(2) For Ottawa, the multilateral approach via the North American Free Trade Agreement(3) and the World