Economy
August 24, 2017
First Round’s Over; What’s Next for NAFTA?
Written by Tim Triplett
The first round of talks to upgrade the North American Free Trade Agreement concluded on Sunday, with officials from the U.S., Canada and Mexico pledging to continue negotiations at a rapid pace, possibly concluding by year’s end.
President Trump inserted some added drama into the situation with comments at a campaign-style rally in Arizona on Tuesday, threatening to pull the U.S. from the trade pact. He told the partisan crowd of supporters: “Personally, I don’t think we can make a deal because we have been so badly taken advantage of. They have made such great deals—both the countries, but in particular Mexico—that I don’t think we can make a deal. I think we’ll end up probably terminating NAFTA at some point.” The unscripted comments elicited little reaction from officials in Canada and Mexico, who reportedly view it as a not-unexpected negotiating ploy.
