Regional
At the regional level, Mexico is a member of the USMCA, which replaced NAFTA in 2018. The USMCA, signed by the presidents of Mexico, the United States and Canada on November 30, 2018, is meant to modernize the free trade relationship between the three countries by supporting mutually beneficial trade leading to freer, fairer markets and robust economic growth in the region. On June 19, 2019, the Senate ratified the USMCA. For more recent updates on the U.S. and Canada’s ratification of the USMCA, see “Recent Developments—Foreign Trade and Balance of Payments—Foreign Trade—Foreign Trade Relations and Agreements.”
On December 10, 2019, representatives of Mexico, the United States and Canada signed the Protocolo Modificatorio del Tratado entre México, Estados Unidos y Canadá (Protocol Modifying the Treaty between Mexico, the United States and Canada, or the Modifying Protocol). The Modifying Protocol includes changes to provisions in the USMCA related to labor, the environment and dispute resolution. The USMCA, as modified by the Modifying Protocol, has now been ratified by Mexico.
On July 24, 2018, the President met with the heads of state of the Pacific Alliance and the Mercado Común del Sur (MERCOSUR) countries. The meeting allowed the two main regional blocs in Latin America to discuss the prospects for regional integration, and the presidents from both regional groups signed a letter of intent to create a regional free trade agreement.
Bilateral
Mexico also is party to free trade agreements and other similar agreements with the following countries/unions: Bolivia, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, the Northern Triangle (El Salvador, Guatemala and Honduras), the EU, the European Free Trade Association (Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway and Switzerland), Israel, Japan, Nicaragua, Peru and Uruguay.
Mexico is currently negotiating individual acuerdos de complementación económica (economic complementation agreements, or ACEs) with Argentina and Brazil, both of which are founding members of MERCOSUR. In 2018, Mexico was also negotiating ACEs with Paraguay and Uruguay, both founding members of MERCOSUR, but there are no updates regarding the status of these negotiations in 2019.
During 2017 and 2018, Mexico and the EU were engaged in negotiations to modernize the Tratado de Libre Comercio entre México y la Unión Europea (the Free Trade Agreement between Mexico and the European Union, or TLCUEM), and, in April 2018, Mexico and the EU reached an “agreement in principle” on a new EU-Mexico global agreement to replace the existing TLCUEM, which will enter into effect in 2020. The modernization of Mexico’s free trade agreement with the EU was a priority in Mexico’s trade agenda; over the past eighteen years, trade between the EU and Mexico has more than tripled from U.S.$20.8 billion to U.S.$70.1 billion.
During 2019, Mexico and the EU continued their internal procedures to finalize the legal text of the modernized TLCUEM, which must be submitted to, and approved by, the Mexican Senate and the European Parliament and Council of the European Union. Once approved by the Senate, the final text of the agreement must be published on the Official Gazette. The portions of the modernized agreement that only require approval by the European Parliament may become effective provisionally, pending approval by the European Commission on the remaining portions. For more recent updates on trade agreements between Mexico and the EU, see “Recent Developments—Foreign Trade and Balance of Payments—Foreign Trade—Foreign Trade Relations and Agreements.”
Mexico participated in several bilateral meetings with the governments of Spain and China in 2017. On April 20, 2017, Mexico and Spain agreed on six new legal instruments covering a range of topics, including air transport regulation, commerce and investment and labor issues. On May 3, 2017, Mexico and China highlighted increases in commerce, investment and air connectivity achieved within the framework of their comprehensive strategic partnership and agreed to deepen bilateral relations.
On July 26, 2017, Mexico and the United Kingdom discussed options to continue and strengthen their economic and cooperative relations in the context of Mexico’s trade agenda and the departure of the United Kingdom from the EU. On October 19, 2017, further high level talks were held between representatives from Mexico and the United Kingdom. The United Kingdom pledged to invest approximately U.S.$80 million in Mexico in order to strengthen the economy through strategic investments in energy, cities, financial services and businesses. Mexico and the United Kingdom pledged ongoing commitment to free trade, bilateral investment and open markets.
For additional information on Mexico’s foreign trade agreements, including its trade relationship with the U.K., see “Recent Developments—Foreign Trade and Balance of Payments—Foreign Trade—Foreign Trade Relations and Agreements.”
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