It looks like Trump has succeeded in securing a new NAFTA agreement now between Canada, the US and Mexico.
DEAL IS DONE—a trilateral trade agreement has been reached between U.S., Canada and Mexico, sources tell me.
— Jennifer Jacobs (@JenniferJJacobs) October 1, 2018
Canada signed on to an agreement that will preserve NAFTA trade pact, two US officials and a Canadian official say https://t.co/wiRuKF9Eo2
— CNN Breaking News (@cnnbrk) October 1, 2018
Canada has signed on to an agreement that will preserve the three-country NAFTA trade pact, a US official and a Canadian official briefed on the talks told CNN late Sunday.
The agreement will allow greater US access to Canada’s dairy market and addresses Canadian concerns about potential auto tariffs, the sources said.
Further details are expected ahead of the midnight deadline.
Wow. Great news!
Here’s even more from the NY Times:
The United States and Canada have reached a last minute deal to salvage the North American Free Trade Agreement, according to people familiar with the negotiations, overcoming deep divisions to keep the 25-year-old trilateral pact intact.
The deal came after a weekend of frantic talks to try and preserve a trade agreement that has stitched together the economies of Mexico, Canada and the United States but that was in danger of collapsing amid deep divisions between President Trump and Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.
The 11th-hour agreement was punctuated by a frenetic Sunday, with Canada’s leaders teleconferencing throughout the day with top American officials in Washington. Mr. Trudeau convened a 10 p.m. cabinet meeting in Ottawa to brief officials on the deal, as Jared Kushner, one of Mr. Trump’s closest advisers, and Robert E. Lighthizer, the president’s top trade negotiator, hashed out the final details. Mexico’s under secretary of foreign trade, Juan Carlos Baker, was expected to present the texts of the agreement to the Mexican senate just before midnight.
Text of the agreement was expected to be presented to Congress as early as Sunday evening.
The deal represents a win for President Trump, who has derided Nafta for years and threatened to pull the United States from the pact if it was not rewritten in America’s favor. The Trump administration struck a deal with Mexico last month to rewrite Nafta and had threatened to jettison Canada from the pact if it did not agree to concessions like opening its dairy market to United States farmers. The White House had set a Sept. 30 deadline to release the text of its new trade agreement with Mexico.
According to people briefed on the negotiations, Canada will ease protections on its dairy market and provide access that is similar to what the United States would have gained through the Trans-Pacific Partnership, a trade treaty that President Trump withdrew from last year.
The United States is poised to relent on its demands to eliminate an independent tariff dispute settlement system that Canada has said is a red line in negotiations, according to a person consulted on the negotiations.
The countries also appear to have reached an understanding that would protect Canada from the threat of automobile tariffs, which Mr. Trump has routinely threatened, though it is not clear how far those protections would extend. Canada also appears ready to accept assurances that steel and aluminum tariffs that Mr. Trump has imposed will be lifted, though it remains unclear whether the taxes would be replaced by quotas that limit metal imports.
After months of sputtering talks, momentum picked up this weekend as Mr. Trudeau inserted himself and made clear that he wanted to get something done. Mexico has also scrambled to try and ensure that the Nafta pact remains trilateral.
I guess by beating Canada over the head with these high tariffs on steel and aluminum, Trump’s gotten the better deal he promised – which is a big win for him and should be a big win for the country. We’ll find out more when we see the details.
In related news, it looks like China may be caving on trade as well:
China will cut import tariffs on textile products and metals, including steel products, to 8.4 percent from 11.5 percent, effective Nov. 1, the finance ministry said on Sunday.
Beijing has pledged to take steps to increase imports this year amid rising tension with some of its biggest trade partners, such as the United States.
Earlier in July, China reduced import tariffs on a range of consumer items including apparel, cosmetics, home appliances, and fitness products to fulfil pledges to further open China’s consumer market.
Import tariffs on wood and paper products, minerals and gemstones will be cut to 5.4 percent from 6.6 percent, the ministry also said in its statement.
Average import tariffs on over fifteen hundred products will be lowered to 7.8 percent from 10.5 percent, the ministry said.
“Reducing tariffs is conducive to promoting the balanced development of foreign trade and promoting a higher level of opening up to the outside world,” the ministry said.
China’s cabinet has announced plans to cut tariffs on machinery, electrical equipment and textile products beginning on Nov. 1, as the country braces for an escalating trade war with the United States.
The overall tariff level will be reduced to 7.5 percent in 2018 from 9.8 percent in 2017 as a result, the cabinet has said.
Looks like protectionist Trump may be getting his way after all. WINNING!