(Reuters) -Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney said he had "constructive" trade talks with Chinese Premier Li Qiang and expected the dialogue to deepen over time, as both countries seek to navigate a way out of a tariff conflict.

Ties deteriorated after Canada imposed tariffs on imports of China-made electric vehicles, as well as Chinese steel and aluminium last year. Beijing fought back by levying hefty taxes on Canadian canola imports, but said the tariffs were preliminary, keeping the door open for further dialogue.

Both countries have made efforts to repair ties after U.S. President Donald Trump returned to the Oval Office in January and slapped tariffs on their respective imports.

In June, the Chinese premier told Carney in a phone call that there were no deep-seated conflicts of interest between the two countries.

"There is some alignment of tariffs with the United States, and I will highlight particularly in the steel sector, where we've been very clear in the approach that we have taken, and we had an open discussion with the Premier and our Chinese colleagues about that and the reasons for that," Carney told reporters on Tuesday, after meeting with Li on the sidelines of a U.N. assembly in New York.

Carney and Li also discussed "agriculture and agri-food products, such as canola, as well as seafood and electric vehicles," according to a readout of the conversation released by Carney's office.

Carney said there was a "very constructive set of discussions" with Chinese officials.

"Those discussions will deepen. I will expect, at the appropriate time, to be meeting with President Xi Jinping but continuing this dialogue with the premier," he said.

Li told Carney that he hoped Canada would establish a "correct" understanding of China, respect each other's core interests and major concerns, and lay a solid political foundation for bilateral relations and cooperation, according to China's official Xinhua news agency.

Trade with Canada has grown rapidly since the start of the year, and Beijing is willing to work with Ottawa to maintain and develop this "positive" momentum, resolve mutual economic and trade concerns, and deepen cooperation, Li said.