Trump Skipping Peru Is Latest Signal Nafta Deal Isn't Imminent
Trump Skipping Peru Is Latest Signal Nafta Deal Isn't Imminent
(Bloomberg) -- The Trump administration’s push to announce a framework Nafta deal this week looks to have fallen short, with talks continuing after the U.S. president canceled a trip to a summit with other Western Hemisphere leaders.
Donald Trump called off the planned visit to Lima for the Summit of the Americas as he readies a response to a chemical weapons attack in Syria, the White House said Tuesday. Vice President Mike Pence will attend instead, along with the leaders of the other two Nafta countries, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and Mexican President Enrique Pena Nieto.
The Trump administration had pushed to announce a deal in principle in Peru, then later said there’s “no rush” after top ministers met last week in the U.S. capital. The summit takes place Friday and Saturday, and Nafta talks are expected to run through the weekend.
The latest negotiating round began Tuesday in Washington, with the crucial issue of rules of origin set for three days of discussion beginning Wednesday, according to two people familiar with the talks, who spoke on condition of anonymity because the discussions are private.
Rules of origin for the auto sector in particular, which govern what share of a typical car must be North American-made to be traded tariff-free, are arguably the biggest sticking point in negotiations that began in August.
The three countries are pushing to reach a deal before Mexican elections on July 1, and U.S. midterm elections later this year. The U.S. said it wants the current Congress to vote on a new deal, and time is running out. Trump said Monday the countries are “fairly close” to a deal and reiterated his threat to terminate it. Any country can quit after six months’ notice.
Mexican Economy Minister Ildefonso Guajardo lowered expectations the nations will reach an initial deal this week, saying Monday he sees an 80 percent chance of an agreement by the first week of May.
--With assistance from Justin Sink
To contact the reporters on this story: Eric Martin in Washington at emartin21@bloomberg.net, Josh Wingrove in Ottawa at jwingrove4@bloomberg.net.
To contact the editors responsible for this story: Brendan Murray at brmurray@bloomberg.net, Chris Fournier, Stephen Wicary
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