Congress

The Asia Reassurance Initiative Act would authorize penalties for IP theft, promote bilateral deals and boost energy exports.

House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) said she held a “constructive” meeting with U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer on Thursday to discuss the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement, which she made clear was far from certain to win Democrats' approval.

“Beyond any progressive tweaks, the House Democrats should demand that the administration make changes to the broader procedural and structural provisions of the USMCA to ensure that it can be enforced and updated when needed.”

BUENOS AIRES -- U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer is confident the trilateral trade deal inked by the U.S., Mexico and Canada will garner enough support in Congress -- and he is adamant that “a very high number of Democrats” will vote for the implementing legislation.

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau called GM's recent plant closings a “heavy blow,” adding, “and Donald, it's all the more reason why we need to keep working to remove the tariffs on steel and aluminum between our countries.”

The Senate Foreign Relations Committee this week discussed how the U.S. should address controversial Chinese trade practices, and whether multilateral economic institutions were effectively working to ensure all countries were abiding by the same rules.