Canada and the U.S. remain far apart as negotiations toward a tariff deal continue ahead of U.S. President Donald Trump’s latest deadline, according to sources.

The sources said the federal government does not believe a tariff deal is imminent because there are still major disagreements between the two sides, and they remain far apart on some issues that need to be resolved.

Canada-U.S. Trade Minister Dominic LeBlanc briefed his provincial and territorial counterparts on the state of the negotiations on Friday. He held a separate briefing with members of the prime minister’s advisory committee on Canada-U.S. economic relations. The sources are familiar with the briefings but were not authorized to speak publicly.

Canada and the U.S. have ramped up trade talks after Trump threatened to slap a hefty 50 per cent tariff on hundreds of Canadian goods starting Aug. 19.

One source with knowledge of the talks said optimism on the Canadian side is eroding and the Americans are not budging from their latest offer. That offer includes a willingness to halve the sectoral tariffs on autos to 12.5 per cent, an offer that the Canadian side believes is not good enough, the source said.