On June 19, 2019, Mexico became the first country to ratify the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA), replacing the current North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), which governs trade in North America. The United States is Mexico’s biggest export market, topping $372 billion of goods and services in 2018, according to the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative. Just over $299 billion was exported from the U.S. to Mexico last year.
Canada is pressing ahead to also ratify the deal. The main question mark hanging over its ratification is in the United States, where lawmakers have threatened to block the process. Earlier this week, U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer said he “believed concerns on enforcing labor and environmental provisions in USMCA can be sorted out quickly.”
The USMCA would update country of origin rules, labor provisions, U.S. farmers receiving access to Canadian dairy markets and intellectual property and digital trade laws.