Growing political risks cloud renegotiation for Nafta trade deal

THE seventh, and potentially final, round of North America Free Trade Agreement (Nafta) negotiations began in Mexico City on Sunday and are scheduled to continue through to March 5. While most parties are keen to see a new, modernised treaty emerge, the talks could yet collapse, adding to angst about the future of international trade under the Trump presidency.

Mexico's chief negotiator, Kenneth Smith Ramos, has forecast that the latest round of talks will be "very tough" because they seek to get to the heart of some of the most controversial outstanding issues, including automotive rules of origin.

The need for progress is urgent, given that the Mexican presidential election campaign begins on March 30; from then until the July 1 presidential ballot, the government of Enrique Pena Nieto could potentially disengage, despite a further round of talks being provisionally scheduled in Washington in April.