US President Trump said Friday that Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney should be making a trade deal with China, an economic U.S. adversary the president has been going after during his second term.

"That`s OK. That`s what he should be doing. I mean, it`s a good thing for him to sign a trade deal. If you can get a deal with China, you should do that," Trump told reporters in response to a question about what he thought of Canada and China announcing a trade deal between the two countries.

Canada and China struck an initial trade deal Friday, cutting tariffs on electric vehicles and canola. According to The Associated Press, Canada will initially allow in a maximum of 49,000 Chinese electric vehicles at a 6.1 percent tariff. Meanwhile, China is expected to lower its tariff on its canola seed by March 1.

The deal came together as Carney met with Chinese President Xi Jinping during the first trip to China by a Canadian prime minister since 2017.

Trump has also waged a trade war on Canada during his first administration, and he has slapped a number of tariffs on China.

In October, Trump and Xi announced an agreement to ease the trade war between Washington and Beijing. Trump is expected to visit China later this year and has spoken with Xi numerous times since retaking office.