CEOs and senior figures from North American trucking companies came together in Mexico City to exchange views on cross-border policies at IRU’s annual North American Leadership Dialogue – amid the upcoming revision of the Mexico–United States–Canada trade agreement.
Revising North America’s free trade agreement – known as CUSMA, T-MEC and USMCA in Canada, Mexico and the US – topped the agenda at IRU’s second North American Transportation Forum (NATF) Leadership Dialogue in Mexico City.
Hosted by IRU member CANACAR, the invitation-only event convened more than 30 CEOs and senior executives from many of the biggest motor carriers operating cross-border services in the region.
The dialogue included a meeting with Luis Rosendo Gutierrez Romano, Mexico’s Undersecretary of Foreign Trade, who outlined key priority areas for the Mexican government in upcoming trade negotiations, with a specific focus on the revision of the North American trade agreement.
He highlighted the strength that a regional North American trading bloc offers, representing 30% of global manufacturing. Undersecretary Gutierrez also noted that 83% of exports to the US face zero tariffs and that, more importantly, much of the critical content in Mexican exports originates in the US. The goal of the ongoing revision efforts is to avoid any major changes that would require legislative approval.
IRU, on behalf of NATF members, proposed to Undersecretary Gutierrez the creation of a working group, once a diagnostic assessment of the situation at the ports of entry has been conducted.
“Undersecretary Gutierrez asked us, on behalf of the North American trucking industry, to provide feedback and guidance to the Mexican government on our needs and issues as we approach the trade agreement’s revision,” said IRU Secretary General Umberto de Pretto.
