Trump Welcomes New Trade Agreement with Mexico and Canada as "New History for Our Country and for the World"

President Trump on Monday welcomed the major revisions he was able to get from Canada and Mexico in the 25-year-old North American trade agreement, while business executives, executives trade unionists and legislators were beginning to pay attention to details.

"Throughout the campaign, I promised to renegotiate NAFTA and today we have kept that promise," said Trump at a press conference at Rose Garden.

Calling the agreement "truly historic," Trump promised, "This will turn North America into a manufacturing facility."

The White House, along with the leaders of Canada and Mexico, announced that they signed the deal Sunday night after the 11-hour deal. But Congressional approval is uncertain, especially if Democrats take control of the House in mid-term elections in November.

Trump was able to force Canada and Mexico to make significant concessions in relation to their original position, but the White House finally withdrew some of its most stringent requirements, including the possibility of ending the deal. 39. North American Free Trade Agreement.

The business groups seemed to be breathing a sigh of relief, in part because Trump had considered replacing the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) with an agreement between the United States and Mexico, excluding Canada. of the final discussion. It was unclear whether this would be legal or practical, but it sowed uncertainty in the prospects of hundreds of companies, which has now been mitigated.

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"We are ready to be a collaborative partner to ensure this agreement is ratified in all three markets, as it will support an integrated and globally competitive automotive business in North America," said Joe Hinrichs, Executive Vice President. from Ford Motor Company. "The benefits of scale and global reach will help increase volumes and support manufacturing tasks."

Congressional GOP leaders, who generally like NAFTA, applauded the announcement of the new deal, with some saying it had validated Trump's approach to trade policy. Many Republicans were moved by Trump's repeated threats to end NAFTA, and strongly opposed the idea of ​​chasing Canada and concluding an agreement with Mexico alone.

"While many in Washington have said that this can not be done, President Trump has worked tirelessly to bring Canada to the table and negotiate a new trade deal that is better for US workers and consumers," said the Minister. representing Steve Scalise (R-La.), the majority whip in the House.

Democrats reacted with greater skepticism and said they needed to know the details to make sure the pact is helping American workers.

"Repairing NAFTA means increasing US workers' paychecks, enforcing real and enforceable labor standards, ensuring the equity of US agriculture and recognizing the link that exists between economic growth and protection." of the environment, "said Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.), House Minority Leader. brief statement. "Democrats will closely examine the text of the Trump Administration's NAFTA proposal and expect further analysis and conversations with stakeholders."

There were, however, warning signs that some groups of workers found the deal unacceptable and would fight for change, even if it would defeat any deal. The reaction of organized workers will certainly weigh heavily on the Democrats.

"The draft agreement between the United States and Mexico contains provisions that represent improvements over the NAFTA, but there are also provisions that must be removed," said Leo Gerard, President of United Steelworkers International. "In addition, we have not evaluated the changes resulting from the agreement that has just been reached to include Canada."

New treaty, preserving the three-nation format of the first North American Free Trade Agreement favored by corporate groups and congressional Republicans, should be signed by Trump and his Canadian and Mexican counterparts within 60 days Congress likely to act on it. next year.

But even though he hailed the new deal, Trump acknowledged the difficult road ahead on Capitol Hill.

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"In theory, there should be no problem, but everything you submit to Congress is a problem, no matter the circumstances," said the president. "They will say that Trump loves him, and therefore we will not approve him."

Negotiations with Canada had been heated, with tensions exacerbated by Trump's personal attacks on Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.

Trump said Monday that the two leaders now have "a great relationship".

"There was a lot of tension, I would say between him and me more specifically, but everything went well," Trump said.

The new agreement preserves a regional economic unit that allows North American manufacturers, particularly in the automotive industry, to compete with their global competitors. Canada and Mexico rank first and second in the export markets of US firms. Last year, the total trade of the United States with the two countries reached 1 100 billion dollars.

According to Peter Navarro, commercial advisor to the White House, one of the main goals of the new agreement is to restore the North American manufacturing industry by encouraging US companies to use domestic suppliers rather than based companies. elsewhere.

The president, long a critic of NAFTA, complained that the original treaty cost the United States millions of jobs in factories and had resulted in persistent trade deficits with its US-based neighbor. South.

Officials extolled the auto industry's provisions in the new deal, which they said would bring the United States "multi-billion dollar production," better access to Canadian dairy markets, and a review all six years to prevent the new agreement from becoming obsolete.

The treaty also addressed e-commerce with new intellectual property protections, including ten-year patents for biologics.

The agreement also includes stronger protections for labor rights, the environment and intellectual property than the Obama era trade agreements, officials said.

Administration officials insisted that they had to publish the text of the new agreement – with the two countries or only Mexico – before September 30th. This would be in line with the Congress' notification requirement and would allow Mexican President Enrique Peña Nieto to sign the agreement on the last day at the office, they said.

The release of the new deal does not mean an end to the trade tensions Trump has been holding with US trading partners around the world. Trump said on Monday that tariffs on imports of steel and aluminum would remain in effect and he again threatened new tariff series against China.

"We will see what happens with China," said Trump. "We do not have an agreement with China. There is no agreement. They do what they want. "

The stock markets opened Monday at the announcement of the transaction. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 200 points early in the session, or about 0.8%. The 500 Standard & Poor's shares rose 0.7%. The Nasdaq Composite, a techno-heavy company, grew by 0.7%.

After 20 months in the White House, the president has risenprivileged relationships with countries that account for about two-thirds of the $ 3.9 trillion worth of goods that the United States buys and sells around the world.

He updated existing trade agreements with South Korea and, now, his North American neighbors, and threatened China with new trade barriers and investment limits unless he abandoned his business model backed by l & # 39; State.

Like no American president since the 1930s, Trump has adopted tariffs as his weapon of choice in a multi-pronged trade war that promises to restore prosperity to closed American factories even as critics complain that they will cost several jobs for each creation.

The agreement will require 75% of duty-free vehicles to be manufactured in North America, compared with 62.5% currently. This will also require increased use of steel and other domestic materials and will create a new requirement for work for those earning at least $ 16 at the time, which will benefit both the United States and Canada. in Canada at the expense of Mexico.

The NAFTA came into effect in 1994 with the bipartisan support of President Bill Clinton and former President George H. W. Bush, whose administration negotiated the original agreement.

But the treaty was controversial from the beginning. Critics included US trade unions and Ross Perot, a businessman and presidential candidate from a third party, who had warned of a "giant sucking sound," as employers reassign their jobs in Mexico, where wages are low.

The president said last week that he would no longer use the name of NAFTA, but rather the new "United States-Mexico-Canada" agreement or USMCA.

"USMCA will give our workers, farmers, pastoralists and businesses a high-level trade deal that will help liberalize markets, fair trade and robust economic growth in our region," said Lighthizer and Canada's Foreign Minister. Chrystia Freeland, in a statement issued less than 30 minutes before the deadline. "It will strengthen the middle class, create good paying jobs and create new opportunities for nearly 500,000 people in North America."

David Lynch contributed to this report.