Among the most biggest change that Mr. Trump championed allows for greater access to Canada’s dairy market, enabling a larger volume of United States exports. It also increases incentives for cars to be made in North America with higher labor standards, maintains an independent dispute settlement system and offers Canada and Mexico some protections from future automobile tariffs that the United States might seek to impose on global imports.
Business groups, which were fearful that Nafta would collapse, hailed the agreement as a major win for the economy on Monday.
“We welcome the announcement that negotiators have reached a deal to modernize Nafta,” said Thomas J. Donohue, president of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. “We look forward to reviewing the details with our members to determine next steps, and we commend the negotiators for their commitment to finding a path forward that includes the U.S., Mexico and Canada.”
But as lawmakers, trade analysts and industry groups studied the new text, some suggested that it was too soon to celebrate.
The United Steelworkers union urged caution on Monday, lamenting that the Trump administration’s steel and aluminum tariffs had not been lifted as part of the deal. Mexico and Canada say they expect those tariffs to be worked out on a separate track.
“The key question now is whether this new agreement, when final, will make a measurable difference in workers’ lives and whether workers will have confidence in the new provisions and the commitment of government to enforce those provisions,” said Leo W. Gerard, president of the union.
Wilbur Ross, the Commerce secretary, defended the decision to maintain the metal tariffs.
“Yes, those are separate issues from this,” Mr. Ross said on the Fox Business Network. “There are problems specific to steel and aluminum relating to our national defense. And at this point in time, those stay the same.”
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