Agricultural News
President Trump Signs USMCA- Officially Replacing the Twenty Five Year Old NAFTA
Wed, 29 Jan 2020 16:07:52 CST
President Donald Trump Wednesday signed the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement. During a White House ceremony, Trump stated USCMA is, "the largest, most significant, modern and balanced trade agreement in history." USMCA replaces the North American Free Trade Agreement, a trade deal Trump considered "outdated" and "terrible." Mexico approved and signed the agreement last year. Legislation to approve the agreement in Canada was announced this week. Canada seems likely to approve the agreement within the next month, following its legislative process. Canada and Mexico are top trading partners for United States agriculture.
President Trump says USMCA is "a monumental win for American farmers and ranchers, improving access to Canadian and Mexican markets." The agreement protects current market conditions between the U.S., Mexico and Canada, and includes an estimated $2.2 billion increase in U.S. agricultural exports. The agreement is expected to grow annual dairy exports by nearly $315 million. Trump promised dairy farmers improved trade with Canada when announcing his intention to upgrade NAFTA.
At the White House signing ceremony, President Trump, Vice President Mike Pence and USTR Ambassador robery Lighthizer all offered remarks- you can hear their comments by clicking on the LISTEN BAR below.
Regarding the signing of USMCA, Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue Wednesday proclaimed, "Today is a good day for American agriculture. Perdue says USMCA"shows the rest of the world the United States is open for business," adding the agreement is critical for U.S. farmers and ranchers. Canada and Mexico are the first and second-largest export markets for United States food and agricultural products, totaling more than $39.7 billion in farm exports in 2018. Those exports, according to the Department of Agriculture, support more than 325,000 American jobs. All food and agricultural products that have zero tariffs under the North American Free Trade Agreement will remain at zero tariffs. Key provisions, Perdue says, include increasing dairy market access, along with updates to biotechnology rules, geographical indications, sanitary and phytosanitary measures, and increased market access for poultry, eggs and wheat, along with agreements to avoid technical trade barriers for wine and spirits.
Both OKlahoma Senators were pleased with USMCA finally being completed. U.S. Sen. Jim Inhofe (R-Okla.) praised President Trump today for signing the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA), which would replace the outdated North American Free Trade Agreement.
"Oklahoma farmers, businesses and manufacturers won today with President Trump's signing of the USMCA," Inhofe said. "This new trade agreement provides certainty for American farmers and ranchers while giving them free and fair access to North American markets. I will continue to fight alongside the president to ensure Oklahoma workers keep winning.
"The USMCA re-emphasizes President Trump's commitment to a trade vision that puts America first. We saw this with the phase one trade deal he signed with China earlier this month. We saw it with the trade deals he struck with Japan and Korea. It's clear President Trump is leveling the playing field with global competitors and America is benefitting because of it. I have no doubt he is nowhere near done we're going to keep working to open new markets, create jobs and grow our economy."
Senator James Lankford, who attended the White House Ceremony, praised the conclusion of the deal saying on Twitter "Today we finally see the much-needed, modernized USMCA trade deal signed by @realDonaldTrump. This is a win for the American worker, the ag community, manufacturers and our state."
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