Mexico and the United States announced Thursday they will start official trade talks this month ahead of the summer review of the USMCA trade agreement.
The trade pact between the United States, Canada and Mexico keeps most of the goods that flow between the three countries tariff-free.
The scheduled review comes six years after President Donald Trump’s first administration negotiated the current USMCA trade treaty that replaced NAFTA.
Amid a year of tariff announcements, the Trump administration hasn't ruled out scrapping the deal entirely. Inu Manak with the Council on Foreign Relations says that would be “extremely disruptive.”
“We sort of take for granted that so much trade between our three countries happens seamlessly, without any interruptions or roadblocks,” Manak said.
Mexico is Arizona’s largest trading partner. Billions of dollars flow across the Sonora-Arizona border every year. Mexican and U.S. officials will meet March 16 to start trade talks.
“If we withdraw from the agreement, the disruption would be quite enormous,” Manak said.
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