Mexico, Canada and the United States will commence formal discussions to review the United States-Mexico-Canada (USMCA) free trade agreement in mid-January, Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney’s office reported on Thursday. 

Carney met with the leaders of Canada’s provinces on Thursday to provide an update on the trade talks. 

Canada-U.S. Trade Minister Dominic LeBlanc “will meet with U.S. counterparts in mid-January to launch formal discussions,” the PM’s office said in a statement, with a deadline of July 1, 2026, set to conclude the process. 

U.S. President Donald Trump negotiated the USMCA deal, which entered into force in 2020, during his first term in office, with a clause included to potentially renegotiate the agreement in 2026. 

The trade pact is up for review next year, and while both Canada and Mexico are seeking to extend it, Trump has publicly considered leaving the agreement. 

That sentiment has prompted Canada to strengthen its bilateral business relationship with Mexico ahead of the review.

During his first state visit to Mexico in September, Carney shared that he was focused on developing a bilateral trade relationship “that operates independently of the whims of the White House, and can survive whatever fate lies in store” for the renegotiated USMCA, the CBC reported.

Canada and Mexico agree to deepen ties ahead of USMCA trade deal review

‘Time is on our side’

During the First National Meeting of Economic Development Hubs for Wellbeing on Sunday, Mexico’s Economy Minister Marcelo Ebrard expressed confidence that the USMCA would be renewed on July 1. 

Trade in goods and services between the three USMCA countries has grown by 37% since the agreement took effect in 2020, with industrial supplies and automotive manufacturing leading the expansion.

In reference to Mexican trade with the United States, Ebrard guaranteed that “it is clear that the treaty will survive. Why? Because, first, we are the United States’ main buyer. No one buys more from the United States than Mexico.”

Regarding the upcoming review, “Our task will be to close the window of uncertainty as soon as possible, at the lowest cost we can,” Ebrard said. “That is the strategy. Time, in a way, is on our side. Remember that time is always Mexico’s greatest resource.”

With reports from ABC News, El Economista and BBC News