At the time of writing, it appears that President Trump has put some water in his wine, as the Québecois might put it, when it comes to NAFTA. While he vowed to scrap the North American Free Trade Agreement, which he called a disaster for the United States, throughout his campaign and at various times during his first 100 days as president, he now says he is open to renegotiating the deal. Trump continues to dangle the stick of a full withdrawal, however, if the terms of the future agreement are not to his liking. Which is why I prefaced this paragraph with the phrase, “at the time of writing.” Given Trump’s erratic nature, his position could shift at any time, potentially causing massive economic disruption across three countries. The time is ripe for a conversation about the agreement, which I will moderate at PLAST-EX, part of the Advanced Design & Manufacturing Expo coming to Toronto on May 16 to 18.
“We need to talk about NAFTA” is scheduled for noon on May 18 at Center Stage and will include Carol Hochu, President and CEO of the Canadian Plastics Industry Association (CPIA; Mississauga, ON), and Jason Lau, a manager in the Medtech Insights division at Decision Resources Group (Toronto).
During the session, Hochu will present the results of a survey on NAFTA conducted among CPIA member companies, while Lau will address the trade agreement’s impact on medical manufacturing, an often overlooked aspect.
Questions and comments from the audience are encouraged.
I hope to see you there!
