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News > Latin America

Mexican President Says He's 'Optimistic' About NAFTA Deal

  • Mexican President Enrique Pena Nieto is

    Mexican President Enrique Pena Nieto is "optimistic" that the United States, Mexico and Canada can successfully renegotiate the North American Free Trade Agreement. | Photo: Reuters

Published 11 January 2018
Opinion

The next round of talks on reworking the 24-year-old trade agreement is due to take place in Montreal later this month.

Mexican President Enrique Pena Nieto said on Thursday he is optimistic that the United States, Mexico and Canada can successfully renegotiate the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) to the mutual benefit of the three countries.

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"I have said so before, I am optimistic about the possibility of getting a deal which benefits the three member states," Pena Nieto said during a speech in Mexico City, Reuters reports.

The next round of talks on reworking the 24-year-old trade agreement is due to take place in Montreal later this month.

Mexico had previously hinted it would exit NAFTA hours after Canadian officials claimed the US will most likely pull out of the agreement. The comments made Wednesday sparked fear in international markets and a devaluation of both the Canadian dollar and the Mexican peso.

Two government officials told Reuters earlier in the day that Canada is increasingly convinced that US President Donald Trump will soon announce that Washington is pulling out of the trade agreement.

Three Mexican sources, who know about the negotiations, then claimed Mexico would exit NAFTA if Trump decided to trigger the six-month process to withdraw from the pact. Initiating the withdrawal process would not be binding for the United States and such a move would need Congress approval.

One of the sources, Raul Urteaga, the head of international trade for the ministry of agriculture, said: "If Trump announces a US withdrawal from NAFTA, well at that moment the negotiations stop."

The penultimate round of the NAFTA negotiations is due to be held in Montreal, Canada, between January 23 and 28.

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