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The new free trade agreement, binding the United States, Mexico and Canada (AEUMC), was definitively approved, Thursday January 16, by the American Congress, with 89 votes against 10.
The text is a modernized version of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), which came into force in 1994 and long decried by President Donald Trump.
The vote, which the White House host can claim as another economic victory, took place less than 24 hours after the signing of an "historic" trade treaty with China. Canada and Mexico account for 40% of the growth in total US merchandise exports. And trade with the two countries reached nearly $ 1.4 trillion in 2018.
The majority Democratic House of Representatives agreed to endorse it on December 19, 2019, after lengthy discussions with the Trump administration and at the cost of numerous amendments to the original text released in late 2018.
Trump's election promise
The amended WUSC was already ratified by Mexico on December 10. Canada is expected to ratify it in the coming weeks.
Before he was even elected, Donald Trump in the campaign had called the Alena the "worst trade agreement in American history" and promised that he would renegotiate it. It made him responsible for the destruction of many American automotive jobs due to massive outsourcing to Mexico, where labor is cheaper.
The negotiations had started in August 2017 a few months after his arrival in the Oval Office. Ottawa and Mexico City had admitted that this quarter-century-old agreement, concluded before the era of the Internet and environmental issues, needed a makeover.
After a marathon of negotiations, sometimes tense, the USMCA had been signed by the three countries concerned, in its initial version, at the end of November 2018. But the American Democrats, under pressure from the main union federation of the country , had relocated the text, demanding amendments to get Mexico City guarantees on its social reform on employment.
A new agreement validated by the Democrats
The Arena has certainly destroyed jobs in the United States, but it has also created a vast area of duty-free trade, facilitating the exchange of goods, services and people. Studies have shown that, overall, it has not only made a major contribution to economic growth but also to raising the standard of living of the population of the three member countries.
Business circles in the three countries have repeatedly urged decision-makers to quickly validate this crucial economic deal.
When the signing was announced in December, the Democrats themselves believed that the USMCA would "boost the economy of the United States, support American workers, protect the environment and improve access to medicines for affordable prices".
The entourage of Donald Trump had him that this crowned the commercial policy of the president who opted for the strategy of maximum pressure, with punitive tariffs, to obtain agreements.
Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin reiterated on Sunday that the USMCA and the agreement with China would boost US growth in 2020. An undeniable asset in this election year for Donald Trump, who is seeking a second term.
In a tweet Thursday, Donald Trump said that American farmers are "really pleased with the new trade agreement with China and the agreement that will be signed soon with Mexico and Canada".
Before that, the president will be faced with his impeachment trial which starts next week.
With AFP
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