Economy
Lighthizer Announces NAFTA Negotiations
Written by Sandy Williams
May 18, 2017
The Trump administration plans to start renegotiation of the North American Free Trade Agreement in mid-August, said US Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer in a letter to Congress today.
Lighthizer said he has triggered the 90-day consultation period with Congress, industries and the public.
“As a starting point for negotiations, we should build on what has worked in NAFTA and change and improve what has not,” Lighthizer said in a conference call with reporters. “If renegotiations result in a fairer deal for American workers there is value in making the transition to a modernized NAFTA as seamless as possible.”
US Secretary of Commerce Wilbur Ross said in a statement on Thursday, “With this letter, we intend to notify not just Congress, but all our trading partners, that free and fair trade is the new standard for U.S. trade deals. Since the signing of NAFTA, we have seen our manufacturing industry decimated, factories shuttered, and countless workers left jobless. President Trump is going to change that. I look forward working with the President, Ambassador Lighthizer, and our counterparts from Mexico and Canada, to find a solution that is both fair and beneficial for all parties.”
The letter did not provide details of negotiations but instead focused on the need to modernize NAFTA and ensure enforcement of commitments made under the agreement.
After previously calling NAFTA a disaster, President Trump reversed his intention to pull out of the agreement in favor of negotiating a better deal for the U.S.
“We are going to give renegotiation a good strong shot,” said Lighthizer.
Sandy Williams
Read more from Sandy WilliamsLatest in Economy
New York state manufacturing index drops again in April
Firms were pessimistic, with the future general business conditions index falling to its second lowest reading in the more than 20-year history of the survey
Construction adds 13,000 jobs in March
The construction sector added 13,000 jobs, seasonally adjusted, in March, but tariffs could undermine the industry.
Supply chains, end-users brace for impact from tariffs
Supply chains are working through what the tariffs mean for them
ISM: Manufacturing expansion loses steam after two months of growth
US manufacturing activity slowed in March after two straight months of expansion, according to supply executives contributing to the Institute for Supply Management (ISM)’s latest report.
Chicago Business Barometer rose to 16-month high in March
The Chicago Business Barometer increased for the third-consecutive month in March. Despite this, it still reflects contracting business conditions, as it has since December 2023.