The debate on the impact of NAFTA on signatory countries continues. While since the implementation of NAFTA, the United States, Canada and Mexico have experienced all the economic growth, higher wages and increased trade, experts disagree on how much the agreement has actually contributed to these benefits, if any, in terms of jobs in American manufacturing, immigration and consumer goods prices. The results are difficult to isolate and other important developments have taken place on the continent and around the world over the past quarter century. The North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) was implemented to promote trade between the United States, Canada and Mexico. The agreement, which eliminated the largest number of tariffs on trade between the three countries, entered into force on 1 January 1994. Many tariffs, particularly in the agriculture, textile and automotive sectors, were imposed between 1 January 1994 and 1 January 2008. The OBJECTIVE of NAFTA was to promote the economic activity of North America`s three major economic powers. On January 29, 2020, President Donald Trump signed the agreement between the United States, Mexico and Canada. Canada has yet to pass it in its parliamentary body starting in January 2020.
Mexico was the first country to ratify the agreement in 2019. NAFTA has been complemented by two other regulations: the North American Agreement on Environmental Cooperation (NAAEC) and the North American Agreement on Laboratory Cooperation (NAALC). These agreements should prevent companies from moving to other countries to take advantage of lower wages, more flexible health and safety rules for workers and more flexible environmental rules. From the beginning, NAFTA`s critics feared that the deal would result in the transfer of U.S. jobs to Mexico, despite the complementary naalc. For example, NAFTA has affected thousands of American autoworkers in this way. Many companies have relocated production to Mexico and other countries where labor costs are lower. However, NAFTA may not have been the source of these measures. President Donald Trump`s USMCA should address these concerns.