FILE PHOTO: President and CEO of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Thomas J. Donohue gives a speech in a meeting at the American Chamber of Commerce of Mexico, at Club de Industriales in Mexico City, Mexico April 24, 2017. REUTERS/Henry Romero
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The U.S. Congress has enough votes to pass a new trade agreement signed by the United States, Mexico and Canada, and doing so would send a positive signal for stalled U.S.-China trade talks, the chief executive of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce told CNBC on Tuesday.
Thomas Donohue said congressional passage of the U.S-Mexico-Canada (USCMA) trade agreement would help boost the U.S. economy and reassure financial markets, which have been roiled by tit-for-tat tariffs imposed by China and the United States.
“If we came up with a good strong vote on that (USCMA), it would give us a great step forward,” Donohue said, adding his belief that Congress had “enough votes to do it right now.”
Reporting by Andrea Shalal and Makini Brice; Editing by Chizu Nomiyama