U.S. trade agency gives Congress to-do list for USMCA deal

January 29, 2019

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer on Tuesday sent Congress a list of legislative changes required to implement the new U.S.-Mexico-Canada trade pact, a key step in the approval process for replacing the North American Free Trade Agreement.

The list includes changes to U.S. laws governing rules of origin for autos, which is significantly different from NAFTA, including a requirement that North American-built autos include significant content in plants with wages averaging at least $16 an hour — effectively in the United States or Canada. It also requires legal changes that exclude Canada and Mexico from “global safeguard” tariffs as agreed under USMCA.

 

 

(Reporting by David Lawder; Editing by Lisa Shumaker)