The USMCA, and Beyond the Negotiating Table

Welcome to The View from North America — my quick-take on the macro policy, data, and regional dynamics shaping the cross-border corridor. If you watched the headlines out of Mexico City this past week, you know the gears of North American trade are spinning. Mexican Economy Minister Marcelo Ebrard and the U.S. Trade Representative’s team are actively…

Tough straits: Americans and the world respond.

The spring of 2026 arrived and brought with it a sobering reality: the US administration’s “doctrine of coercion” is bumping up against both the law and public sentiment. President Trump’s use of blunt-force tariffs and a superior military have reshaped certain theaters. However, the US Supreme Court has limited the executive’s use of IEEPA for…

Geopolitical shift, a North American shield.

2026 blew in at a dizzying pace, headlined by the “tale of two speeches” at Davos which underscored a profound reordering of global alliances and confirmation that we can no longer rely on the predictability of the past.  This February marks 4 full years since Vladimir Putin first invaded Ukraine. While Russia held its ground in 2025, Moscow did not make any…

Spring is in the air, and so are the tariffs.

Spring is definitely in the air. Rory’s got his green jacket, and the jacarandas have been in bloom here in Mexico City for weeks now. Rather than try and provide a tic-toc on the shifting dynamics in the overall US-Mexico relationship, I wanted to get a note out to you with some thoughts on the…

Tariffs, Tyrants and Trump.

Last Sunday, very different scenes played out in two of North America’s capital cities. In Mexico City, thousands of Mexicans rallied together to celebrate president Sheinbaum’s success in delaying most of the tariffs threatened by the U.S.. Meanwhile, in Ottawa, Mark Carney overwhelming won the race to be Canada’s next prime minister. Both of these…

Turmoil and tariffs spell tension in 2025

As we close out 2024, I want to begin this last note of the year by first thanking my friends, clients, associates, and readers for their support over these past 12 months.   With less than a month until year’s end, yet another seemingly once in a generation geopolitical event occurred with the ouster of…

Mexico’s transfer of power: La Presidenta.

From the devastation in the wake of Hurricane Helene in the U.S. southeast to an expansion of the conflict in the Middle East, there is a lot going on in the world right now. Today, though, I want to focus on Mexico’s political transition. On Tuesday, Claudia Sheinbaum – a climate scientist and career public…

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