COMMENTS TO THE U.S. TRADE REPRESENTIVE RELATING TO THE OPERATION OF THE AGREEMENT BETWEEN THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, THE UNITED MEXICAN STATES AND CANADA
TESTIMONY OF HONORABLE ALBERT C. ZAPANTA, PRESIDENT AND CEO
THE UNITED STATES-MEXICO CHAMBER OF COMMERCE
Washington, D.C.- November 3rd, 2025
The United States-Mexico Chamber of Commerce, a nonprofit business association chartered in Washington, D.C. in 1973, is the leading binational business organization working to build mutually beneficial trade and investment relationships in the Americas. Its mission is to promote business between the United States, Mexico and Canada.
The success of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) and the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) 2019-2025 and the impact on their respective economies cannot be refuted with their tri-national trade increasing significantly since 1993. As an example, Mexico is the largest market for the U.S. in energy while Canada is the largest energy supplier, surpassing $100 billion in combined energy goods and commodities. In 2024 the U.S. exported $334 billion in goods and $50.4 billion in services, which is more than it did with the United Kingdom, Germany, France and Italy combined, and nearly twice as much as it did with China. In agriculture, USMCA provides the third largest destination for American grown produce and crops.
It is also telling to note that the current trade gap was created by the relocation of American manufacturing and technology-based business of the NAFTA partnership. China accounts for more than 60% of the U.S. trade deficit.
North America from the Arctic region to Panama, over the last thirty years has seen a major breakthrough in the way trade is conducted in the Western Hemisphere. The approval of the NAFTA and the USMCA brought together the economies of the United States, Mexico and Canada, establishing the framework that created the world’s largest trade region, connecting over 490 million people, and producing in excess of $30 trillion worth of goods and services annually.
During the years NAFTA and the USMCA have been in effect, the region has experienced dramatic development with respect to production, consumption, distribution of goods, services, and people. The hemisphere is indeed repositioning with the opening of the Northwest Passage in the Arctic and the expansion of the Panama Canal, with partners finding a need for additional focus on incorporating trade discussions and review of the USMCA.
We must consider the notion of North America in the context of today’s present challenges; including security, global governance, technology innovation and the quest for energy independence, while securing the safety of goods and people that expedite trade in a secure and efficient manner along our mutual borders, providing stimulus for job creation, and incorporating the use of technology to maximize returns and encourage further investment.
The Border of today has been strengthened by more than thirty years of shared matured interests, common objectives, opportunities and challenges. The current economy faces economic blocks, pricing in international markets, competitive business opportunities in the hydrocarbon sector, information technology, supply chain management.
The 2024 Presidential Elections in both the United States and Mexico, heightened the focus and debate on the impact of international trade, immigration, the rule of law and the growing concern relative to cyber and physical security, and prompted the Chamber to establish the North American Working Group Initiative.
The Working Group’s recommendations are:
