Nogales produce distributor Jaime Chamberlain remembers the time when fruits and vegetables shipped to or from Mexico immediately got more expensive when they crossed the border. “We used to pay tariffs of up to 35 percent on (imported) cantaloupes,” Chamberlain said, referring to the days before NAFTA took effect in 1994.
Chamberlain and many other business men worried that president Trump’s vow to gut NAFTA would constrict commerce with Mexico and Canada, Arizona’s largest foreign trade partner. This would possibly drive up consumer costs or leading to lay-offs in certain industries.
But he and others are breathing a little easier after Trump on Monday announced that the US has reached a preliminary deal with Mexico.
Key negotiating provisions focused on automobiles and other manufacturing industries, as well as agriculture. Arizona business leaders are quite happy, quickly adding that they want Canada to be included in any ultimate deal.
Scope of the agreement
According to en.brinkwire.com, the White House on Monday reported that a preliminary agreement was reached with Mexico. Reaction in the media characterized the deal more as a “rewrite” of NAFTA than a wholesale replacement of the trade agreement.
