WASHINGTON: President Donald Trump said the United States was starting work on a new trade deal with Mexico, describing the proposed agreement as better for Washington.
“We’re also starting on a new deal with Mexico. A much better deal for the United States,” Trump told reporters on August 21. Trump also said he believed Washington could reach an agreement with Canada.
His comments came as trade tensions between the United States and Canada intensified after last-minute negotiations failed to produce a deal. A new round of US tariffs on a range of Canadian goods took effect on August 22.
The United States, Mexico and Canada currently trade under the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement, or USMCA, which took effect in July 2020.
Read: Sheinbaum US Intervention Stance Hardens in Mexico
USMCA replaced the North American Free Trade Agreement, which had governed regional trade since 1994. The supplied material does not provide details on the scope, timetable or negotiating terms of the proposed US-Mexico agreement.
Read: US-Canada Tariffs Hit 50% as Trade Talks Collapse
It also does not indicate whether Trump’s proposed deal would replace, amend or operate alongside the existing USMCA framework.
