China responded by imposing duties of 100% on Canadian canola oil and meal and 25% on pork and seafood. It added a 75.8% tariff on canola seeds last August. Collectively, the import taxes effectively closed the Chinese market to Canadian canola exports, an industry group said.

Most were renewals of non-binding agreements that had languished during the big chill in Canada-China relations for much of the past eight years.

Diversifying trade relationships while sustaining those with America will be a tricky balance for Canada’s prime minister

Canada’s prime minister took an important step toward reinvigorating his nation’s ties with China and diversifying its trade away from the U.S., as Beijing increasingly seeks to woo U.S. allies

Canada was one of the first Western countries to recognize communist China, establishing ties in 1970 under Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau.

Prime Minister Mark Carney witnessed the signing of an agreement to co-operate more with China on clean and conventional energy the first day of talks in Beijing on Thursday, after years of difficult relations between the two countries.