US trade representative Robert Lighthizer recently informed the Senate finance committee that while he wants to move as quickly as possible, it is a much higher priority for him to seal a "very high-standard" agreement for the US during the upcoming talks on the North American Free Trade Agreement.
The US is currently engaged in a 90-day consultation period with stakeholders and plans to start renegotiating NAFTA with partners Canada and Mexico on August 16; the government wants the discussions to conclude by early 2018. Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross has acknowledged that the logic to wrapping up the talks by late 2017 or early next year is due to Mexican presidential elections in mid-2018 followed by American midterm elections that November.
Donald Trump has threatened to withdraw from NAFTA if Mexico and Canada fail to agree on more favorable terms for the US, while many industry associations have expressed support for NAFTA given the benefits to US employment and industry.
Lighthizer said on Wednesday that Trump has asked him to focus on improving opportunities and fairness for American workers as part of the negotiations. Senator Sander Levin reminded Lighthizer of the need for enforceable labor and environmental commitments as Mexican workers earn approximately 19 percent of what a US worker would earn for similar positions. Specifically, the analysis is to include auto manufacturing and assembly facilities in Mexico as many semi-finished and finished goods are imported into the US.
Senator Ron Wyden requested consideration for the removal of Chapter 19, which he claimed hurt the US’s ability to fight unfair trade practices and evaluate currency manipulation and market-distorting state owned enterprises, along with investigating sophisticated attempts to circumvent trade rules.