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Opting against a longer-term renewal opens the door to years of contentious negotiations over the rules governing continent-wide supply chains and low tariff levels vital for automakers, farmers, retailers and energy companies.The Trump administration is “not prepared to rubber stamp the agreement,” US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer said in an interview. “We think there are substantial issues.”Get the latest headlines, breaking news and columns.By signing up you consent to receive the above newsletter from Postmedia Network Inc.A welcome email is on its way. If you don't see it, please check your junk folder.The next issue of Top Stories will soon be in your inbox.We encountered an issue signing you up. Please try againThe decision marked a head-spinning reversal for President Donald Trump, who had rammed through the original USMCA in 2020 and once called it the “best and most important trade deal ever made.” Trump soured on the agreement in his second term in part because it protects huge sections of trade from tariffs he sought to impose and did little to address trade deficits with Mexico and Canada.The potential disruptions and the broad economic impact are stark. USMCA boosted economic activity among the three countries, which combined represent nearly a third of the world’s gross domestic product. Intraregional trade surpassed $1.6 trillion in 2024, up from $1 trillion when the agreement went into place in 2020. On Wednesday, the six-year anniversary of USMCA’s inception, the countries could have extended the accord by 16 years. That scenario was unlikely, however, as Trump made clear he wanted changes or might opt to go it alone — part of a broader campaign by his administration to reshore manufacturing jobs and squeeze concessions from trading partners.USMCA has provided a measure of stability in an otherwise turbulent period that included Trump’s tariff clashes with China and other major trading partners. His moves to impose new levies came alongside sweeping exemptions for USMCA-qualified products, easing the blow on Mexico and Canada.The decision not to renew the deal and instead shift to rolling negotiations means Trump can leverage an “implicit threat of roughly doubling tariffs on Mexico and Canada,” Bloomberg Economics’ Nicole Gorton-Caratelli and Maeva Cousin wrote. Use of the program jumped last year, when new tariffs created a stronger incentive to file the paperwork, and roughly 90% of imports from Canada and Mexico are now recorded as USMCA compliant.Still, other US duties on products such as autos and metals remain a sore spot and will cloud future talks.Trump sought to escalate pressure before July 1, claiming that the US would be better off without the deal. That path will be difficult given bipartisan support for USMCA in Congress, even if some lawmakers and labor unions want to see it improved.Under the annual reviews, the countries can try to reach an agreement during the next 10 years. If no resolution is reached during that span, the pact expires in 2036.“We have these ongoing negotiations and we don’t know exactly when they will end, and there’s no short- or medium-term forcing function for those negotiations to end,” said Patrick Childress, co-lead for Holland & Knight’s USMCA team. “So that creates, of course, some uncertainty for companies.”Related: Nissan Cuts Costs on Mexico-Made Cars to Blunt 25% Tariffs Washington has already engaged in formal talks with Mexico in recent months but has largely shunned Canada at the negotiating table. Trump has clashed with Prime Minister Mark Carney, who has sought to reduce Canada’s trade dependence on the US. Complicating any negotiations is China’s more assertive trade posture. As Chinese automakers gain market share outside the US, critical USMCA issues include a minimum threshold requirement for American auto parts and a push by Washington to tighten the rules of origin on autos, prompted by concerns over transshipments of Chinese inputs.‘Mixed Messages’Another potential flashpoint is the tolerance for Chinese investment, and the degree to which Mexico and Canada align with the US’s national-security concerns about it.“Canada is interesting because one day they’ll say, ‘We want to help America reindustrialize. We want to help make America great again,’” Greer told Bloomberg News. “Then the next day they’ll talk about bringing in Chinese investment. So we get mixed messages from Canada.”Given the geopolitical backdrop and Trump’s maximum-leverage style, an extended negotiating process could prompt companies to hold off on potential investments. Lobbying groups including the US Chamber of Commerce and the Business Roundtable have pushed for governments to strengthen and retain the agreement. “Supply chains are built with 30-year visibility, not five, and uncertainty could dissuade investment and growth,” Madeline Chalecki, assistant director of the Atlantic Council’s GeoEconomics Center, wrote in an online post this week.After the announcement Wednesday, US trade associations for automakers including General Motors Co. and Toyota Motor Corp., parts suppliers and dealers called on the countries’ leaders to extend the trilateral pact, crediting it with supporting billions of dollars in US vehicle production investment and thousands of manufacturing jobs.“We urge the leaders of the US, Canada, and Mexico to swiftly reach consensus on an extension of USMCA that preserves the existing trilateral partnership” and returns the preferential treatment for qualifying goods, groups including the Alliance for Automotive Innovation and the National Automobile Dealers Association said in a joint statement.What’s NextDominic LeBlanc, the Canadian minister responsible for US trade, expressed support for renewing the deal during Wednesday’s meeting, and said he looked forward to further engagement with the US and Mexico.“We agreed on the importance of continuing our discussions and identifying ways to ensure trade and investment frameworks between Canada, the United States and Mexico continue to support North American prosperity and competitiveness” LeBlanc said in a statement. “For Canada, this includes substantive discussions with the United States on addressing sectoral tariffs on Canadian steel, aluminum, autos and lumber.”US and Mexican negotiators will discuss rules of origin for industrial goods that go beyond the automotive sector when they meet for a third time during the week of July 20, according to a senior administration official who spoke to reporters after the official announcement. The talks may also cover aerospace, intellectual property and water quality, the official said.Mexico’s economy minister, Marcelo Ebrard, downplayed concerns over annual reviews of the pact, and said Mexico does not see any “irreconcilable differences” among the three North American partners and argued that Washington’s position should not be read as a prelude to quitting the agreement.“Anyone could withdraw from the agreement with six months’ notice. If the US had wanted to withdraw, it would have done so by now,” he said.The economic impact, Ebrard said, will depend on how the reviews are handled, adding that Mexico’s goal is for each successive round to involve fewer disputes.Unions, RetailersIn June, the US Chamber of Commerce brought more than 70 business partners to Capitol Hill, pressing lawmakers to “support maintaining the framework, press for full compliance from all three governments and encourage an expeditious and orderly review that delivers certainty for businesses.”The Retail Industry Leaders Association, whose members include Home Depot Inc. and Target Corp., urged the parties to preserve the duty-free benefits of the deal and reduce uncertainty surrounding the review period as much as possible.“USMCA provides the certainty retailers need to plan supply chains, invest in North America, and keep goods moving efficiently for consumers,” RILA director of government affairs Ellen Jackson said in a statement.The International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers urged member countries to use the review period to toughen labor standards, strengthen enforcement and improve rules of origin. The pact should do better to “discourage corporations from moving jobs out of the United States and Canada in pursuit of cheaper labor,” the union said in a statement Wednesday.—With assistance from Meghashyam Mali, Amy Stillman, Laura Curtis, Gonzalo Soto, Maya Averbuch and John Harney.(Updates with comments from Mexican, Canadian trade officials.) Join the Conversation This website uses cookies to personalize your content (including ads), and allows us to analyze our traffic. Read more about cookies here. By continuing to use our site, you agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.