CUSMA not renewed in its current form: U.S. trade representative

U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer said the U.S. is not renewing the Canada-U.S.-Mexico Agreement (CUSMA) in its present form.

Greer said in a statement that the trade agreement will remain active as the U.S. continues to negotiate with Canada and Mexico.

The trade agreement now enters a cycle of annual reviews for up to ten years. If the partners fail to agree on an extension by the end of that decade, the deal will come to an end.

The trade deal stays in place for now. It can only be cancelled if one of the three countries gives a six month warning that it plans to leave.

Canada and Mexico have said they were looking for a 16-year extension.

Prime Minister Mark Carney said previously he did not expect a resolution Wednesday regarding the CUSMA renewal.

Negotiated under the first Trump administration, CUSMA replaced the longstanding North American Free Trade Agreement.

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CUSMA has shielded Canada and Mexico from many of U.S. President Donald Trump’s tariffs.

Polling for the New North America Initiative by Ipsos Public Affairs and Nanos Research reported that while Canada is seen as a major economic challenge by only 8 per cent of Americans, 77 per cent of Canadians view the U.S. as one.

Carlo Dade, director of international policy and the New North America Initiative at the University of Calgary’s School of Public Policy, said the missed deadline holds little weight for CUSMA’s future as long as productive discussions continue.

“I think the market is adjusting to a new normal of uncertainty with the U.S.,” Dade said in an email. “That said, awareness of the reality also means greater awareness of the cost.”

Wednesday was the deadline for all three partners in the trade pact to indicate whether they want the deal renewed.

With Files From The Canadian Press

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