From June to the end of August 2018, Canada was sidelined due to bilateral discussions between the United States and Mexico. [137] On August 27, 2018, Mexico and the United States announced that they have entered into a bilateral agreement on a revised NAFTA trade agreement, which includes provisions that would boost U.S. auto production[138] a 10-year data protection period against generic drug production on an expanded list of products enjoyed by pharmaceutical companies. , in particular U.S. manufacturers of high-priced biopharmaceuticals, a sunset clause – a 16-year maturity at regular 6-year intervals to possibly extend the 16-year terms and conditions agreement, and a de minimis threshold raised, with Mexico increasing the de minimis value of $50 for duty-free and excise-free online purchases to $100. [139] [140] According to an August 30 article in The Economist, Mexico has agreed to increase the rules of origin, which would mean that 75% of a vehicle`s components must be manufactured in North America, as opposed to the previous 62.5%, in order to avoid tariffs. [141] Given that automakers are currently importing cheaper components from Asia, consumers would pay more for vehicles under the revised agreement. [142] In addition, approximately 40 to 45 per cent of vehicle components must be produced by workers earning at least $16 an hour, as opposed to the current $2.30 per hour that a worker earns on average at a Mexican auto plant. [141] [142] The Economist described this as a “Mexican car construction in a straitjacket”. [141] Additional ancillary agreements have been reached to allay concerns about the potential impact of the treaty on the labour market and the environment.

Critics feared that U.S. and Canadian companies in Mexico would have generally low wages, which would lead to a shift of production to Mexico and a rapid reduction in manufacturing employment in the United States and Canada. Meanwhile, environmentalists were concerned about the potentially catastrophic effects of rapid industrialization in Mexico, which does not have experience in implementing and enforcing environmental legislation. Possible environmental problems were raised in the North American Environmental Cooperation Agreement (NAAEC), which established the Commission for Environmental Cooperation (CEC) in 1994. About a quarter of all U.S. imports, such as crude oil, machinery, gold, vehicles, fresh produce, livestock and processed food products, come from Canada and Mexico, the second and third largest suppliers of imported products to the United States. In addition, about one-third of U.S. exports, including machinery, spare parts, mineral oils and plastics, go to Canada and Mexico.

According to Chad P. Bown (Senior Fellow at the Peterson Institute for International Economics), it is unlikely that a renegotiated NAFTA, which would restore barriers to trade, will help workers who have lost their jobs, regardless of their cause, to use new employment opportunities.” [154] After diplomatic negotiations in 1990, the heads of state and government of the three nations signed the agreement on 17 December 1992 in their respective capitals. [17] The signed agreement had to be ratified by each country`s legislative or parliamentary department. Mr. Trudeau and Canadian Foreign Minister Chrystia Freeland announced that they would join the agreement if it was in Canada`s interest. [143] Freeland returned prematurely from his European diplomatic trip and cancelled a planned visit to Ukraine to participate in the NAFTA negotiations in Washington, D.C.