US, Canada, and Mexico Begin Negotiations to Renew the USMCA, a Key Trade Agreement
· Telemundo McAllen (KTLM)
Tourists from Chattanooga are checking into beach resorts in Cancun. Parts from Canadian cars supply factories in the north-central region of the United States and vice versa. Happy hour enthusiasts are raising glasses of Mexican tequila and mezcal in bars in Seattle. All of this adds up. The United States trades $1.9 trillion a year—$5 billion a day—in goods and services with its neighbors, Canada and Mexico. These countries have surpassed China to become the two largest trading partners of the United States. Therefore, what is at stake is significant when it comes to tweaking the rules governing trade among the three countries. After a year of chaotic tariff policies under President Donald Trump, many businesses in the U.S., Canada, and Mexico would welcome a return to stability across North America. However, it is unlikely they will achieve that. The regional trade agreement, known as the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA), which Trump negotiated and touted during his first term, reached its renewal review date on Wednesday, a process that is likely to take months, if not longer. The road ahead is fraught with challenges. 'There will be a lot of drama this summer,' said Diego Marroquín Bitar, a researcher at the Americas Program of the Center for Strategic and International Studies, last week at a forum on the USMCA sponsored by the Cato Institute.
AI summary · Source: Telemundo McAllen (KTLM) →
