Greer says Trump comfortable with Canada trade status, points to Mexico deficit talks
US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer says Canada talks continue without urgency, while a fourth round of USMCA negotiations with Mexico is set for next week
Published
US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer said Friday that President Trump is comfortable with where trade stands between the United States and Canada, and that the US is still getting the oil, gas and potash it needs from its northern neighbor. He described conversations with Canada as good, with no urgency attached to reaching any new deal.
Greer pointed instead to Mexico, saying the US is in talks to manage a trade deficit he described as exploding. The US goods trade deficit with Mexico reached $196.9 billion in 2025, up 14.8% from the year before, according to Mexico News Daily, which cited Reuters.
A fourth round of USMCA negotiations between Greer and Mexican Economy Secretary Marcelo Ebrard is scheduled for September 28 and 29 in Washington, according to Rio Times Online. Trump and Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum spoke by phone on September 16, with officials on both sides describing the talks as moving in a positive direction, the outlet reported. Sheinbaum said on September 21 that Mexico is looking for ways to import more from the United States to help narrow the deficit, according to KJZZ. The US declined to renew the USMCA in its current form on July 1, moving the pact into a process of annual reviews that can run through 2036, Rio Times Online reported.
Greer's comments reinforce the market's existing baseline on Canada: no imminent tariff risk and trade flowing normally, consistent with the comfort level Trump has signaled in recent weeks. The focus on Mexico's deficit suggests any new pressure is more likely to fall there, leaving the broader tone on North American trade largely unchanged.