Earlier this week, President Donald Trump said he wants to see a quick conclusion to the North American Free Trade Agreement talks. National Cattlemen’s Beef Association President Kevin Kester is also hoping for those discussions to be finalized. There are several remaining issues to be resolved however and Kester isn’t sure when or if they’ll be solved very quickly.
Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross says the most difficult issues include rules of origin, the five year sunset provision, dispute resolution mechanisms and labor under that category. Kester says the original NAFTA deal has been a good one for the cattle industry.
Kester wants to see NAFTA finalized and following that movement on other trade pacts., including a possible bi-lateral deal with Japan.
Time is waning for a NAFTA resolution as both Mexico and the U.S. have elections this year.
