Mexico City | Reuters — Mexico has offered to extend a deadline to ban genetically modified (GM) corn until 2025 and is working on a proposal to overhaul its plan, Economy Minister Raquel Buenrostro said on Wednesday. Buenrostro said President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador had told the U.S. Mexico could delay the contentious GM corn

Mexico to rework decree on GM corn, economy minister says
GM corn, glyphosate bans now due to take effect in 2024

Mexico open to deal with U.S. on GMO corn
U.S. corn growers seek clarity over ban
Mexico City | Reuters — Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador said on Tuesday he is seeking a deal with Washington after the United States threatened legal action over Mexico’s plan to ban genetically modified (GMO) corn in 2024. After meeting with Mexican officials on Monday, U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack said Mexico’s decree

CUSMA pact takes effect under cloud of disputes, COVID-19
Deal appears to assure continuity of trade for agriculture
Washington/Mexico City/Ottawa | Reuters — A modernized U.S.-Mexico-Canada trade pact took effect on Wednesday, ensuring continuity for manufacturers and agriculture, but the threat of disputes is exposing cracks in what was meant to be a stronger North American fortress of competitiveness. As the deal kicks in, the Trump administration is threatening Canada with new aluminum

Amigos no more
How Donald Trump split Mexico and Canada in trade talks
Reuters – A day after winning the Mexican presidential election, Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador took a congratulatory call from U.S. President Donald Trump. But Trump had something more important on his mind: Would Mexico’s new president consider a bilateral trade deal? Lopez Obrador responded he would be “open to the possibility” in the absence of

U.S. trade chief says NAFTA approval on ‘thin ice’ without deal soon
Washington/Mexico City | Reuters –– U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer said on Tuesday that if a deal to revise the North American Free Trade Agreement cannot be reached with Canada and Mexico in about three weeks, its approval by the U.S. Congress could be in jeopardy. Lighthizer said at a U.S. Chamber of Commerce event

Steel shock drives wedge into sluggish NAFTA talks
Mexico City | Reuters — Negotiators trying to rework the NAFTA trade deal on Thursday were hit by the prospect of a battle over U.S. steel tariffs that could make it more complicated to build autos in North America, one of the most sensitive issues at the talks. U.S. President Donald Trump said he would

Tough U.S. NAFTA demands send ball back into lobbyists’ court
Arlington, Va. | Reuters — Lobbying efforts on the North American Free Trade Agreement faced a major test this week after the Trump administration ignored advice from U.S. business groups and pitched proposals to radically reshape NAFTA, leaving its future in doubt. The U.S. demands to force renegotiation of NAFTA every five years and reserve

U.S. stance on autos sows more doubt about NAFTA overhaul
Arlington, Va. | Reuters — The Trump administration on Friday demanded that U.S.-made content account for half the value of the cars and trucks sold under the North American Free Trade Agreement, raising further doubts about any potential deal to renew the pact. Three sources briefed on the protectionist U.S. proposal, which is in line

U.S. hikes NAFTA tension with call for ‘sunset clause’
Arlington, Va. | Reuters — Washington has dramatically increased tensions in talks to renew the North American Free Trade Agreement by proposing that the lifespan of any new deal be limited to five years, people familiar with the negotiations said on Thursday. The proposal for a so-called sunset clause — just one of a series

Sharp differences over labour surface at NAFTA trade talks
Mexico City | Reuters — Tensions over sharp differences in pay between Mexican workers and their Canadian and U.S. counterparts surfaced on Sunday as negotiators discussed labour market rules in talks to overhaul the North American Free Trade Agreement. Canada’s biggest private-sector union said NAFTA should be scrapped if Mexico cannot agree to better labour