Greer Travels to Mexico for Third USMCA Round; 14 Issues on the Table

U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer will travel to Mexico City July 22-24 for the third bilateral USMCA review round, with 14 pending issues on the table after the list was reduced from 54, the USTR announced on July 17, according to El Financiero.

Greer will meet with Economy Secretary Marcelo Ebrard and President Claudia Sheinbaum at the National Palace. The agenda covers steel, aluminum, the automotive sector, economic security, agriculture, labor issues, and electronic payment services. The visit follows the July 1 announcement in which the United States stated it would not renew the USMCA in its current format, opting instead for annual reviews over the next decade. For Mexico, certainty in the trade framework is critical: the USMCA underpins cross-border investment flows in manufacturing and energy, from steel inputs for pipelines and transmission towers to equipment for power generation plants. Steel and aluminum, key inputs for energy infrastructure (from natural gas pipelines to wind towers and solar park structures), are particularly sensitive: any adjustment to rules of origin or tariffs shifts project costs on both sides of the border.

The USTR highlighted concrete advances by Mexico in recent months: the update of dual-use export controls in July, reforms to pharmaceutical intellectual property protections, the modernization of the Single Window for Foreign Trade in May, and the launch of a customs brokers program at all ports. On environmental matters, Mexico strengthened oversight of avocado exports from illegally deforested areas and industrial discharge controls toward the U.S. Southwest. Greer noted that negotiations have recorded significant progress and thanked Ebrard's team for their collaboration, while underscoring the mandate to close legal gaps that, according to Washington, allow countries outside the agreement to benefit from the treaty, as reported by Forbes México.

The third bilateral round precedes the first formal joint USMCA review scheduled for the second half of 2026. The U.S. trade deficit with Mexico, estimated at more than 170 billion dollars according to official data, will remain the backdrop to the talks.

This article was drafted with artificial intelligence assistance from verified sources and reviewed by a human editor before publication.