Congress

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.”

Senate Finance Committee members Tim Scott (SC) and James Lankford (OK) believe the U.S. should prioritize efforts to strike a bilateral deal with New Zealand next year, a subject Scott said he recently raised with U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer.

The House on Tuesday passed a government spending bill that would reauthorize the Export-Import Bank for seven years, create a program to boost U.S. competitiveness against China and allow presidential Cabinet members to step in and serve on the bank’s board temporarily at times when it would otherwise lack a quorum.

The assessments of the deal's likely impact on employment, labor and the environment have not yet been made public.

The U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement implementing legislation, submitted to Congress on Friday, includes the creation of several interagency panels designated to oversee the implementation of the deal’s labor and auto rules, among other items.

"The USMCA trade agreement could be brought to the floor next week."

In the late-stage U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement negotiations that ended this week, Mexico accepted a version of a labor enforcement mechanism and penalties for workers’ rights violations it had initially rejected because of a range of additional requirements that were attached to the proposals, Mexico’s chief trade negotiator told Inside U.S. Trade in an interview this week.

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.