In a letter to his counterparts in the United States and Mexico, Canada-U.S. Trade Minister Dominic LeBlanc says he wants to renew the countries' trilateral trade deal for another 16 years and opt out of an annual review process, CTV News is reporting Tuesday.
"This agreement is highly beneficial to each of our countries and to the integrated North American economy," LeBlanc wrote in a letter to U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer and Mexican Secretary of Economy Marcelo Ebrard.
"The growth and success brought forward by our historic trilateral trade agreement is why I am confirming that Canada recommends renewal of the agreement for another 16 years," he also wrote.
LeBlanc is set to travel to Washington on Tuesday, along with Canada's Chief Trade Negotiator Janice Charette, for a meeting with Greer, as the CUSMA review deadline fast approaches.
By July 1, officials must notify their counterparts whether they want to renew CUSMA for a 16-year period or agree to an annual review process.
"Canada recognizes that either or both other parties to the agreement may with to propose areas where improvements may be warranted to strengthen North American competitiveness," LeBlanc wrote in his letter to Greer and Ebrard, adding Canada "looks forward to continued engagement" with the U.S. and Mexico. "In parallel, discussions with the United States on addressing sectoral tariffs will be essential," he also wrote.
Canada and the U.S. have been in a protracted trade war for more than a year, after U.S. President Donald Trump slapped a slate of tariffs on Canadian imports. While the vast majority of products are tariff-free because they're covered under CUSMA, several sectoral levies are still in place.
(Market Chatter news is derived from conversations with market professionals globally, and/or from other media sources. This information is believed to be from reliable sources but may include rumor and speculation. Accuracy is not guaranteed.)