Canada

Major opposition parties in Canada's Parliament last week expressed concerns over the modified U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement, potentially throwing a wrench in the ratification process in Ottawa but not putting the deal's future in serious jeopardy, analysts said this week.

Hoffa: “The renegotiation of NAFTA and the subsequent improvements made by Democratic leadership have resulted in a final package that is superior to the original.”

Rep. Jimmy Gomez (D-CA) told Inside U.S. Trade that Ways & Means Committee staff was “literally working around the clock” on the deal’s next steps and “living on junk food so hopefully we’ll see something soon.”

More details on the new standards are in the “protocol of amendment” published this week.

“They dropped it due to pressure from industry and the many members of Congress who expressed concern.”

The U.S.-Mexico-Canada agreement will not be brought to a vote in the Senate before it adjourns for the year, Senate Majority Mitch McConnell (R-KY) said on Tuesday, adding that the deal likely will be voted on after the Senate concludes its impeachment trial of President Trump.

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) and House Ways & Means Chairman Richard Neal (D-MA), along with other Democrats, on Tuesday unveiled new tweaks to the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement and said a vote on an implementing bill could come as soon as next week.

After discussing the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement with House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) on Monday evening, key House Democrats said they expected an announcement of an adjusted deal to be made on Tuesday, when top officials from the three countries are slated to meet in Mexico.

President Trump on Monday said he was “hearing from unions” that end-stage U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement discussions were turning a corner, lauding what he called an abundance of “strides over the last 24 hours” amid reports that U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer was planning to travel to Mexico on Tuesday.