Trump's NAFTA Remarks Point to Few Changes for Canada, Plenty for Mexico

Steph Willems
by Steph Willems

After several weeks spent wondering just how the continent’s trade landscape will look after president Donald Trump renegotiates the North American Free Trade Agreement, the business world now has a slightly clearer picture of where the pieces may land.

Trump spoke briefly about his trade goals with both Mexico and Canada after meeting with Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau at the White House.

By all appearances, the agreement will change very little for the U.S.’s northern neighbor. During his first days in office, Trump said plainly that he hoped to renegotiate or completely rewrite agreements with other countries. However, there’s little doubt that Trump will push for far greater changes to goods moving across the Rio Grande.

“We’ll be tweaking it,” Trump told reporters when asked about the trade agreement between the U.S. and Canada. He didn’t go into details on what industries might be impacted the most. Trump did say that any trade disparity between the two countries is “a much less severe situation than what’s taken place on the southern border.”

The two men agreed to work together for the benefit of industry and jobs on both sides of the border, reaffirming the two countries’ shared economic interests.

The remarks should help diffuse anxiety felt by automakers and suppliers who feared the financial disruption of a possible northern border tax. While the proposed Mexican border tax wasn’t mentioned, Trump implied that a trade solution wouldn’t be imposed on the U.S.’s southern neighbor.

“We’re going to work with Mexico,” he said. “We’re going to make it a fair deal for both parties.”

What that agreement will look like, and how it will impact automakers, remains to be seen.

Steph Willems
Steph Willems

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  • Big Al from Oz Big Al from Oz on Feb 14, 2017

    I read in Bloomberg today that countries that buy US dollars for trade and US government borrowings are dumping the USD at a high rate due to Trumps erratic and confusing position. What does this mean. Less dollars and higher interest rates on money. An increase in US export cost. The billions Trump will lose reducing taxes to business, pumping money into infrastructure, military, the wall, etc will cost more. He's already back pedalled with the Chinese and Japanese and he will do the same with Mexico.

    • Onyxtape Onyxtape on Feb 14, 2017

      Exactly. A few high-profile phone calls from the Titans of Industry and everything will go back to business as usual. He was going to negotiate us into a better position in regards to NAFTA and with China? Pfft. Remember this is a guy who LOST money selling steaks, football, and gambling to Americans in America. He's the lousiest of businessmen.

  • Voyager Voyager on Feb 14, 2017

    "Ask not what your country could do for you... But what you could do to personally please me"

  • FreedMike This is before Cadillac styling went full scale nutty...and not particularly attractive, in my opinion.
  • JTiberius1701 Middle of April here in NE Ohio. And that can still be shaky. Also on my Fiesta ST, I use Michelin Pilot Sport A/S tires for the winter and Bridgestone Potenza for my summer tires. No issues at all.
  • TCowner We've had a 64.5 Mustang in the family for the past 40 years. It is all original, Rangoon Red coupe with 289 (one of the first instead of the 260), Rally Pac, 4-speed, factory air, every option. Always gets smiles and thumbs ups.
  • ToolGuy This might be a good option for my spouse when it becomes available -- thought about reserving one but the $500 deposit is a little too serious. Oh sorry, that was the Volvo EX30, not the Mustang. Is Volvo part of Ford? Is the Mustang an EV? I'm so confused.
  • Mikey My late wife loved Mustangs ..We alway rented one while travelling . GM blood vetoed me purchasing one . 3 years after retirement bought an 08 rag top, followed by a 15 EB Hard top, In 18 i bought a low low mileage 05 GT rag with a stick.. The car had not been properly stored. That led to rodent issues !! Electrical nightmare. Lots of bucks !! The stick wasn't kind to my aging knees.. The 05 went to a long term dedicated Mustang guy. He loves it .. Today my garage tenant is a sweet 19 Camaro RS rag 6yl Auto. I just might take it out of hibernation this weekend. The Mustang will always hold a place in my heart.. Kudos to Ford for keeping it alive . I refuse to refer to the fake one by that storied name .
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