Last year saw many developments in trade—all of which will have an impact on the apparel and footwear industries in 2019. While the trade war between the United States and China dominated most of the headlines, the U.S. was also locked in protracted negotiations with Canada and Mexico over the North American Fair Trade Agreement, the U.K. grappled with the complexities of Brexit and many U.S. allies sought out deals that left this country out.
Through it all, the American Apparel & Footwear Association has been there helping to influence policy and steering the industry through the uncertainty.
Hear AAFA’s president and CEO Rick Helfenbein and executive vice president Steve Lamar provide perspective on how all of these developments could play out this year, including the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership or CPTPP, which recently took affect without the U.S., as well as the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement, which replaces NAFTA.
Watch the video to see why Helfenbein says NAFTA was in need of a tune up and why Lamar thinks the U.S. is experiencing “trade FOMO.”