Op-Ed: A stronger USMCA is critical to America’s future

As we approach July 1, AMU aims to provide readers with a broad and deep understanding of the negotiations. We’ve enlisted aluminum industry representatives from each country’s respective trade associations to weigh in on what they hope will be achieved in this next round of the USMCA.

Kicking off the series is a letter penned by the Aluminum Association expressing the desired outcomes for US aluminum stakeholders. The author, Charles Johnson, is president and CEO of the Aluminum Association. 

US perspective

The United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) modernized North American trade and reinforced the manufacturing foundation that supports the automotive, packaging, aerospace, energy and defense sectors.

For aluminum, the agreement signed during President Trump’s first term (and the North American Free Trade Agreement before it) has helped support an integrated regional supply chain that contributed to more than $11 billion in US industry investment over the past decade, including the first two new rolling mills built in the United States in nearly 50 years. 
 
But as the six-year review approaches this summer, it is increasingly clear that market access alone is not enough. Without stronger enforcement and better alignment among trading partners, the agreement risks falling short of its promise for US aluminum producers and workers. 
 
That challenge comes at a pivotal moment for the global aluminum industry. China and other non-market actors continue to distort global markets through massive state-backed overcapacity, subsidies and unfair trade practices that threaten aluminum producers across North America. In response, the United States, Canada and Mexico have an opportunity to position North America not simply as a free trade zone, but as a strategic regional aluminum production bloc capable of competing against unfairly traded material and supporting long-term manufacturing resilience. 
 
The United States is a net importer of aluminum, relying on stable Canadian primary aluminum supply and a robust scrap trade with both Canada and Mexico that accounts for around 90% of needed US scrap imports. Preserving market access across North America remains important to maintaining competitive regional supply chains. But the success of those supply chains ultimately depends on ensuring they are not undermined by unfair trade originating outside the region. 
 
Unfortunately, without strong tariff alignment in the region, no matter what controls we have at the US border, unfairly traded metal from China, Russia and elsewhere can enter through the backdoor. 
 
Increasingly, policymakers in Washington appear to recognize that reality. As the Trump administration begins signaling its priorities for the USMCA review, officials have emphasized goals that closely mirror long-standing Aluminum Association priorities. As one top trade official recently put it, America needs “unified tariff borders with Mexico and Canada,” citing aluminum and other products made with unfairly traded input material as a particular concern. 
 
Those signals reflect a growing understanding that North America must operate with a more coordinated trade and enforcement strategy if it hopes to compete effectively against China’s state-supported aluminum industry. A fragmented regional approach leaves gaps that bad actors can exploit through transshipment, weak enforcement and duty drawback loopholes. 
 
That is why tariff harmonization and stronger enforcement mechanisms must become central priorities in the USMCA review. A unified North American aluminum border would strengthen the integrity of regional supply chains and prevent unfairly traded aluminum from entering the region through the weakest trade regime. A strengthened USMCA should align tariffs to match the scope and strength of US Section 232 aluminum measures, improve import monitoring and close loopholes that weaken those protections. 
 
USMCA made important progress, particularly through stronger automotive rules of origin that incentivized regional sourcing of metals. However, enforcement gaps and inconsistent trade policies have limited the agreement’s effectiveness in fully protecting North American aluminum production from unfair competition. The upcoming review is an opportunity not simply to preserve the status quo, but to ensure the agreement delivers for manufacturers in the United States, Canada and Mexico, not non-market competitors. 
 
That starts with stronger transparency and accountability. The Aluminum Association applauds the Mexican government for recent actions to address unfair trade, including establishing an Aluminum Import Monitoring system and working with the United States to improve oversight of aluminum flows into the region. Canada has long been aggressive in this space, with a strong traceability and monitoring platform. They have also taken significant steps toward greater tariff harmonization and stronger trade enforcement. This is important progress, but more sustained coordination and enforcement are needed to close remaining gaps and strengthen North America’s position as a globally competitive aluminum manufacturing base. 
 
Policymakers should also strengthen aluminum rules of origin and regional value content requirements, particularly for unwrought aluminum that was smelted or cast in a non-market or sanctioned economy. Additionally, preserving the free flow of aluminum scrap within North America and closing loopholes to prevent downstream products containing unfairly traded aluminum from entering the region are important. Without these reforms, unfairly traded material will continue to erode the competitiveness of regional manufacturers and discourage future investment in US aluminum production. 
 
Aluminum is the backbone of modern infrastructure, mobility, energy and national security. It moves us, powers us and connects us — from the cars on our roads and the rockets in our skies to the cans we raise in celebration and the power lines that keep the lights on. A competitive US aluminum industry depends not only on strong domestic investment, but also on a coordinated North American market capable of defending itself against global state capture and unfair trade in aluminum. 
 
The USMCA review is a golden opportunity to strengthen a critical North American partnership — but only if policymakers are willing to address the agreement’s shortcomings. By preserving market access with Canada and Mexico while significantly improving enforcement against unfair trade, the United States can help ensure North America remains the most competitive, resilient and strategically aligned aluminum manufacturing region in the world.