In the span of one week, President Trump managed to both reject and leave the door open for the trade agreement that governs roughly $1.5 trillion in annual commerce across North America.
On June 10, Trump declared he was “not looking to renew” the US-Mexico-Canada Agreement, adding that the United States “doesn’t need anything that Canada has.” Seven days later, on June 17, he softened the stance just enough to keep everyone off balance, saying the US “would do better without” the deal while also noting, “I’m open to doing it.”
The timing matters. The first scheduled joint review of the USMCA is set for July 1, 2026, barely two weeks away.
What the USMCA actually does
The USMCA replaced NAFTA when it went into effect in 2020, covering everything from auto parts to dairy to digital commerce rules.
