After an announcement Monday that Mexico was invited to join the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP), news broke Tuesday that Canada has also been asked to join. If both countries join, the accord would become the US' largest trade agreement by joining all three NAFTA countries with eight Pacific nations.
Thomas J. Gibson, President and CEO of the American Iron and Steel Institute (AISI) commented on the announcement: "North American steel producers have many shared concerns with respect to trade issues in the Asia-Pacific region, including in particular the trade-distorting behavior of Asian state-owned and state-supported enterprises. AISI has actively supported the requests of both Canada and Mexico to join the TPP negotiations. Having all three NAFTA countries participating in these talks should enhance the international competitiveness of NAFTA steel producers and North America's manufacturing supply chain."