Do NAFTA ao USMCA: inovações e perspectivas

Abstract

The new agreement between the United States of America, Mexico and Canada, called the USMCA (United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement), finally came into force on the first day of July 2020, after three years of negotiations. This agreement replaces the NAFTA (North America Free Trade Agreement) and brings several innovations, being a great bet to accelerate the economy of these countries, mainly the United States. Taking into account the current nature of the theme, the present work has as its fundamental scope to highlight some of the main innovations brought by the new North American agreement, considering its importance for the global economy. Based on an exploratory, bibliographic and documentary research, this study is supported by analyzes of scholars of international law and integration law, journalistic articles and documents dealing with the said agreement. The objective is to investigate relevant changes brought by the USMCA, exposing and criticizing them, considering the present reality, to respond in general to the question of how this agreement can trace new directions in the relations between these countries and even the globe, delimiting itself on aspects of the automobile sector, intellectual property and digital commerce. From this investigation, it is concluded that the new pact does not intend to resolve the existing asymmetries since the previous agreement and reflects a new political and economic alignment followed mainly by the United States of America, which greatly benefits in the points analyzed in this research. The structure of the work is divided, first, to analyze some important points of the old North American agreement, NAFTA, and then to present the new pact, USMCA, highlighting the modifications in the automobile sector, intellectual property and digital trade.