The White House’s top economic adviser says he expects to land favorable trade agreements with both Canada and Mexico, a notable expression of confidence given the turbulence that has defined North American trade relations in recent months.
National Economic Council Director Kevin Hassett pointed to positive momentum in negotiations with both countries, even as the US pursues an unconventional strategy: scrapping the existing trilateral trade framework entirely and replacing it with two separate deals.
The USMCA is dead, long live bilateral deals
The US-Mexico-Canada Agreement, which took effect in July 2020 as NAFTA’s successor, had a built-in six-year review deadline of July 1, 2026. The Trump administration decided not to renew it.
Instead of maintaining the three-country framework, the White House is betting that individual agreements with each neighbor will produce better outcomes for American workers and businesses. The new deals could potentially span a decade each.
