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Washington (AFP) – Talks to revamp the North American Free Trade Agreement could resume shortly, US Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross said Thursday.

Mexico’s President-elect Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador “has changed his rhetoric quite considerably and has made it very clear that he likes the idea of redoing NAFTA,” Ross said.

Lopez Obrador has a team working with the current government on the NAFTA talks and “we think those will get going quite quickly,” Ross said in an interview with CNBC.

Carlos Urzua, tapped to be Mexico’s next finance minister, said after the elections that the NAFTA talks could accelerate after the US congressional elections in November.

President Donald Trump threatened to withdraw from the two-decade-old trade pact with Mexico and Canada, and demanded the deal be revised.

While officials rushed to reach an agreement before Mexico’s July presidential election, the talks stalled over US demands, including the call for higher US content in all autos receiving duty-free treatment in the region.

Ottawa and Mexico also are at odds with Trump over the steep import duties imposed on steel and aluminum, and have retaliated with punitive tariffs on US products.

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