On the Dash:
- Trump says the U.S. won’t renew USMCA ahead of the critical July 1 review deadline.
- Non-qualifying vehicles already face a 25% tariff, with costs likely to rise further.
- Automakers warn they may not be able to profitably sell entry-level vehicles without a deal.
President Donald Trump said Wednesday he does not plan to renew the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA), pushing North American trade into a prolonged renegotiation with direct consequences for auto dealers.
Speaking to reporters in the Oval Office, Trump said he is “not looking to renew” the agreement ahead of its mandatory July 1 review deadline.
“USMCA did one thing that I loved. After six years, it comes up for renewal. I don’t know that I’m going to renew it,” Trump said. “It was a great deal for one reason. It gave the right to terminate.”
If any party declines to confirm renewal, the pact enters a cycle of annual reviews and expires in 2036, according to the Center for Strategic and International Studies. The deal stays in force for now, but long-term planning becomes harder for dealers and automakers.
U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer told Congress in December 2025 that a simple extension was off the table. “A rubberstamp of the Agreement is not in the national interest,” Greer said in a briefing to the House Ways and Means and Senate Finance committees.
The White House is pushing for at least 50% U.S. content in new vehicles to qualify for tariff-free treatment, Bloomberg reported. USMCA-qualifying vehicles from Canada and Mexico currently enter the U.S. duty-free. Non-qualifying vehicles face a 25% tariff. Without a deal, automakers may no longer be able to profitably build and sell entry-level vehicles in the U.S. market.
Greer told Congress that U.S. exports to Canada and Mexico are up 56% since 2020, citing the deal as a partial success. But he said the agreement has fallen short on manufacturing jobs and industrial capacity.
Negotiations are expected to stretch through the summer and beyond.
