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NAFTA | USMCA

North America Free Trade Agreement | US-Mexico-Canada Agreement


International Investment Agreements (IIAs): Frequently Asked Questions
This report for US Congress answers frequently asked questions about US international investment agreements including provisions for investor-state dispute settlement.
Canada just threw a grenade into Elizabeth Warren’s trade fight with Obama
Last week, Canadian Finance Minister Joe Oliver gave a speech in New York arguing that the Volcker Rule — a key tenet of the US’ 2010 banking law — violates the North American Free Trade Agreement. This underscores Senator Warren’s warning that such deals, including the Trans-Pacific Partnership that Obama is currently negotiating, jeopardize financial reform.
Investor-State Dispute Settlement: Review of Developments in 2014
According to UNCTAD, 40% of all new ISDS cases in 2014 were initiated against developed countries (the historical average is 28%). A quarter of them are intra-EU disputes.
Europe, Mexico to seek new trade pact to deepen North American ties
The European Union and Mexico will launch negotiations towards a new free-trade agreement later this year, as Europe seeks to tie its economy closer to North America following a deal with Canada and efforts to sign an accord with the United States.
The free trade treaty that destroyed Mexico
Mexico is the clearest example of the consequences treaties could have on the economic, political and financial life of a nation and its society.
Free trade and Mexico’s junk food epidemic
Food companies are infiltrating, inundating and taking over traditional food distribution channels and replacing local foods with cheap, processed junk foods. Free trade and investment agreements have been critical to their success.
NAFTA increased mass migration to the United States
After Mexico, the United States and Canada signed the FTA, in the agricultural sector alone five million workers lost their jobs in Mexico and they were forced to migrate.
NAFTA ruling in Nova Scotia quarry case sparks fears for future settlements
A NAFTA arbitration panel has ruled against Canada in a claim by a US company that wanted to develop a quarry in Nova Scotia, although a dissenting member of the panel warned that the decision will be seen as a “remarkable step backwards” in environmental protection.
Oil giants win $17M from Ottawa under NAFTA
ExxonMobil and Murphy Oil awarded $17.3 million in damages from Canada in investor-rights dispute over research and training funding in Newfoundland and Labrador.
UNCTAD releases review of trends in investment agreements and investor-State dispute settlement
​In 2014, countries concluded one international investment agreement every other week. Investors continue to use investor-State dispute settlement, but the number of new cases does not reach the record high of previous years.
California wine producers claim B.C. liquor reforms violate NAFTA, GATT, and EU-Canada Agreement
The association representing California wine producers has called on Premier Christy Clark to revoke or modify plans to favour the sale of B.C. wines in grocery stores claiming that "they violate Canada’s international trade obligations including NAFTA, GATT and the EU-Agreement on wine sales".
Canada being sued for billions under NAFTA investor protections
Study charts foreign corporations’ growing use of NAFTA’s investor protections to sue governments over environmental and economic regulations
India, US agree to restart talks on bilateral investment treaty
India and the US have reaffirmed commitment to the long-pending Bilateral Investment Treaty with PM Modi conveying to secretary of state John Kerry that New Delhi was prepared to hold early talks for the same.
NAFTA scrutiny of oilsands tailings ponds opposed by Canada
Canada is trying to stop NAFTA’s environmental watchdog from taking a closer look at the environmental effects of the huge tailings ponds produced by Alberta’s oilsands, and it appears Mexico and the US will go along with efforts to stop a formal investigation.
Sugar buyers’ slam NAFTA sugar pact, shift focus to Australia, Canada
A new US-Mexican government pact will limit supplies of sugar from Mexico via NAFTA and drive US manufacturers to seek supplies from Australia and Canada through the Trans-Pacific Partnership, according to the Sweetener Users Association (SUA), which represents candy makers like the Hershey and Mars.
US can’t apply ’Buy America’ rule in Canada
Forcing companies to adhere to Washington’s "Buy America" policy outside US borders goes too far, Canadian officials say.
ISDS cannot be fixed
The European Commission’s claim that threats posed by the investor-state dispute settlement system can be fixed by “improving” ISDS provisions in trade pacts has already been proved false, says Public Citizen
US sugar policy: Sweet for a few, sour for most
New restrictions on Mexican sugar imports undermine the government’s negotiating position in free trade talks.
EU sugar industry fears import pressures In TTIP talks
Europe’s sugar industry fears there could be sugar imports from the combined US and Mexican market if sugar is becomes part of the ongoing Trans-Atlantic Trade and Investment Partnership negotiations.
Geist: How a 20-year-old patent application could upend Canada’s biggest trade deal
From a Canadian perspective, the Eli Lilly case has provided a powerful reminder that the risks associated with ISDS may outweigh the benefits with legal cases that can take decades to resolve.