Mexico City: In a significant development for North American economic diplomacy, Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum said on Thursday that her recent telephone conversation with U.S. President Donald Trump was both “productive and cordial,” focusing on strengthening trade ties and advancing cooperation on economic issues between the two neighboring countries.
Sheinbaum took to the social platform X to underline that the two leaders continued to make progress on trade matters and agreed that their respective negotiating teams would continue working together to explore improvements in bilateral commerce. The call, she said, demonstrated a mutual interest in sustaining dialogue despite broader policy disagreements.
The conversation followed a high-level meeting in Washington, D.C., where Mexico’s Economy Minister Marcelo Ebrard and U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer formally agreed to launch discussions on potential reforms to the United States–Mexico–Canada Agreement (USMCA) the comprehensive trade pact that has governed economic relations among the three nations since 2020.
Under the terms of the USMCA, the three countries are obliged to begin a joint review of the agreement by July 1, 2026, marking its sixth anniversary. This review will determine whether the pact should be renewed for another 16-year term or adjusted to reflect evolving economic priorities and challenges.
The USMCA has provided Mexico with a degree of protection from broad U.S. tariffs by enabling compliant Mexican goods to enter the United States duty-free a key pillar of Mexico’s export-oriented economy. The discussions initiated by Ebrard and Greer are viewed as an early step toward recalibrating the agreement’s provisions to address contemporary trade dynamics.
Analysts say that the tone of Thursday’s exchange, described as constructive by both leaders’ teams, reflects an effort on both sides to balance economic cooperation with strategic interests, even as disputes over trade imbalances and tariff policies occasionally surface.
The ongoing dialogue comes amid a backdrop of broader U.S.–Mexico negotiations over issues such as migration, supply-chain security and transnational economic integration. Experts note that maintaining stable commercial relations with the United States Mexico’s largest trading partner remains a central priority for Sheinbaum’s administration.
As officials work toward a formal agenda for USMCA review and potential modernization, Thursday’s call is seen as a signal of continued engagement and diplomatic pragmatism, underscoring that constructive dialogue can persist even amid complex policy debates.