free trade

Brian Mulroney, the former prime minister of Canada, listens during a Senate Foreign Relations Committee hearing on the Canada-U.S.-Mexico relationship on Jan. 30, 2018, on Capitol Hill in Washington.

World News

Former Canadian Prime Minister Brian Mulroney has died at 84

12:26am March 01, 2024

by The Associated Press

Former Canadian Prime Minister Brian Mulroney, who forged close ties with two Republican U.S. presidents through a free trade agreement that was once vilified but now celebrated has died. He was 84.

The Mexican, U.S. and the Canadian flags.

Why the U.S. might not win the global economy without Canada and Mexico

6:31am October 11, 2022

by Greg Rosalsky

A new book argues that for the U.S. to become more globally competitive and create good jobs, we must embrace and expand trade with Canada and Mexico.

Vietnamese Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc (left) and Trade Minister Tran Tuan Anh applaud next to a screen showing Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga and Trade Minister Hiroshi Kajiyama holding up signed RCEP agreement, in Hanoi, Vietnam. China and 1

World News

Asia-Pacific Allies Sign Huge Trade Deal With China While U.S. Sits It Out

9:16pm November 17, 2020

by Julie McCarthy

What it means for the U.S. to be on the sidelines of another major trade agreement, the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership, which 15 countries agreed to Sunday.

Employees work on the assembly line of the Tiguan model at the Volkswagen car plant in Puebla, central Mexico, in March. The auto sector is a key focus of the newly revised North American Free Trade Agreement.

Will NAFTA 2.0 Really Boost Mexican Wages?

1:43pm October 17, 2018

by Carrie Kahn

The new trade deal signed by the U.S., Mexico and Canada says much of a car should be built by workers making at least $16 an hour. Some experts are skeptical that will happen anytime soon in Mexico.

European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker (from left), Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and European Council President Donald Tusk conclude their news conference at the Japan-EU summit on Tuesday in Tokyo.

In Face Of Protectionism, EU And Japan Sign Huge Open-Trade Deal

3:33pm July 17, 2018

by Merrit Kennedy

The agreement will create an open-trade zone for 600 million people. The parties account for approximately one-third of GDP worldwide.

European Council President Donald Tusk (left), Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe (center) and President of the European Commission Jean-Claude Juncker meet at the European Council on Thursday in Brussels.

EU And Japan Strike Trade Deal, Call It 'Strong Message To The World'

4:14pm July 06, 2017

by Merrit Kennedy

The European Union and Japan have reached an agreement in principle for a new free trade deal. It would lower barriers to trade between two of the world's most important economic areas.

U.S. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin, right, and German Finance Minister Wolfgang Schaeuble, left, address the media during a joint press conference in Berlin, Germany, on Thursday in advance of the weekend's G20 summit.

At Mnuchin's First Big Meeting, G20 Shies From Endorsing Free Trade

7:17pm March 18, 2017

by Laurel Wamsley

The gathering of the world's largest economies, the group took a step back from its typically overt pro-free trade agenda. The cause of the change seemed to be pushback from the United States.

Homeland Security chief John Kelly (from left), Secretary of State Rex Tillerson, Mexican Foreign Minister Luis Videgaray and Mexican Interior Minister Miguel Angel Osorio Chong spoke with reporters after initial meetings in Mexico City Thursday.

Amid U.S.-Mexico Strains, Tillerson And Kelly Take On 'Tough Trip'

7:53pm February 23, 2017

by Hannah Bloch

Talks between Secretary of State Rex Tillerson and Homeland Security chief John Kelly with their Mexican counterparts were intended to smooth out growing tensions between the two countries.

Trucks, including an armored car, pass through U.S. customs in 2016 in Laredo, Texas.

Trump Vows 'Big Border Tax' For U.S. Manufacturers That Move Jobs Abroad

12:03pm January 25, 2017

by John Ydstie

President Trump has suggested an import tax of up to 45 percent on goods made by U.S. firms overseas. But it's illegal to single out individual companies and it's unclear what form the tax would take.

Queue Listen Now

Trump's Pick For U.S. Trade Representative Hints At Big Policy Overhaul

2:54pm January 03, 2017

by Jackie Northam

Robert Lighthizer, 69, has long advocated a tougher stand on trade with China, which is in line with President-elect Donald Trump's campaign rhetoric.