NAFTA Negotiations Increasingly Difficult, Says Commerce Secretary

Ross wants Canada and Mexico 'to come to their senses and make a sensible deal'

U.S. Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross delivers keynote remarks during the U.S.-Japan Council's annual conference at the J.W. Marriott in Washington, DC, Nov. 13, 2017. NAFTA renegotiation talks may become more challenging in 2018, warned Ross. Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images

WASHINGTON—The North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) talks are now addressing the more intricate details of the deal, and the political calendar will make it very challenging to complete a new agreement, according to Secretary of Commerce Wilbur Ross.

Speaking at the 2017 U.S.–Japan Council annual conference on Nov. 13, Ross said there is no exact date by which the negotiations must end. But if there is no resolution by the end of March, then it will become more difficult to finalize the talks, he said.