From June to the end of August 2018, Canada was sidelined due to bilateral discussions between the United States and Mexico. [137] On August 27, 2018, Mexico and the United States announced that they had reached a bilateral agreement on a revised NAFTA trade agreement, which includes provisions that would boost U.S. auto production[138] a 10-year data protection period against generic drug production on an expanded list of products enjoyed by pharmaceutical companies. , particularly U.S. manufacturers of high-quality bionological drugs. , a sunset clause – a 16-year expiry date with periodic audits over 6 years to eventually extend the contract for an additional 16 years, and a high de minimis threshold, where Mexico increased the de minimis value of US$50 in terms of duty-free and tax-free online purchases to $100. [139] [140] According to an August 30 article in The Economist, Mexico has agreed to increase the rules of origin, which would mean that 75% of a vehicle`s components must be manufactured in North America, as opposed to the previous 62.5%, in order to avoid tariffs. [141] Given that automakers are currently importing cheaper components from Asia, consumers would pay more for vehicles under the revised agreement. [142] In addition, approximately 40 to 45 per cent of vehicle components must be produced by workers earning at least $16 an hour, as opposed to the current $2.30 per hour that a worker earns on average at a Mexican auto plant. [141] [142] The Economist described this as a “Mexican car construction in a straitjacket”. [141] Under the leadership of President Donald J. Trump, the United States renegotiated the North American Free Trade Agreement and replaced it with an updated and rebalanced agreement that works much better for North America, the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA), which came into effect on July 1, 2020.

The USMCA is a mutually beneficial benefit to workers, farmers, farmers and businesses in North America. The agreement creates more balanced and reciprocal trade that supports high-paying jobs for Americans and cultivates the North American economy. According to a 2018 Sierra Club report, Canada`s NAFTA and Paris Agreement commitments have been met. The Paris commitments were voluntary and NAFTA was mandatory. [65] It is impossible to isolate the effects of NAFTA on the broader economy. For example, it is difficult to say with certainty what percentage of the current U.S. trade deficit, which reached a record $65,677 million at the end of 2005, is directly attributable to NAFTA. It is also difficult to say what percentage of the 3.3 million manufacturing jobs that were lost in the United States between 1998 and 2004 is the result of NAFTA and what percentage would have been created without this trade agreement. It cannot even be said with certainty that the intensification of trade between NAFTA countries is exclusively the result of the trade agreement.