Trade Advisory Group
Trade Advisory Group
The Trade Advisory Group (TAG), open to Council of the Americas member representatives and invited experts, advocates for open markets, trade facilitation, and rules-based trading systems in the Western Hemisphere. TAG members share a common commitment to the principle that international trade is a critical element in achieving sustainable economic growth in the United States and the nations of the Americas. TAG is a leading platform for policy-level idea generation and guidance related to hemispheric trade and investment, consistent with the longstanding values of the Council of the Americas, which we also use to promote actions for enhanced, effective economic engagement and appropriate reforms.
The regional trade agenda continues to evolve. From pandemic-era retrenchment to the specter of protectionism to how best to manage global supply chains, these issues continue to be primary business concerns for the United States and the hemisphere Meanwhile, the opportunities inherent in stronger economic relations are critical drivers of regional growth.
The Council of the Americas prioritizes the importance of a robust North American trade and investment relationship as fundamental to our own competitiveness. We believe that North America works best when North America works together. Trade and investment are the glue that holds the region together and should be expanded throughout the Americas for mutual benefit. This is equally true for hemispheric relations beyond North America. The region is and must remain a critical partner for the United States.
Opportunities are available for COA corporate members to sponsor the Trade Advisory Group. In 2025, the TAG is sponsored by Amazon and VISA.
TAG Private Events in 2025:
- USMCA: COA Members Trade Consultation, February 3
- TAG Meeting with Miguel Castilla, Former Peru Minister and Ambassador, February 6
- Brazil Trade Policy 2025: A Conversation with Foreign Trade Secretary Tatiana Prazeres, February 24
- Members Trade Briefing: Tariffs on Mexico, March 10
- Virtual Briefing with Goldy Hyder, President and CEO, Business Council of Canada, March 20
- Regional Trade & Investment with Isabella Cascarano, March 25
- Private Discussion with Congressman Adrian Smith (R-NE), March 31
TAG Comments and White Papers:
- Read comments submitted to the U.S. Trade Representative on March 11, 2025 to assist in reviewing and identifying unfair trade practices and initiating all necessary actions to investigate harm from non-reciprocal trade arrangements
- Read comments submitted to the U.S. Trade Representative on January 8, 2028 in response to the Section 301 Investigation of Nicaragua’s Acts, Policies, and Practices Related to Labor Rights, Human Rights, and Rule of Law
- Read the Request for Comments on the Americas Partnership for Economic Prosperity (Trade Track) submitted on July 22, 2024
- Read a DHL White Paper in collaboration with Council of the Americas on the environmental sustainability of e-commerce from June 2021
The 2025 co-chairs of TAG:
Jonathan C. Hamilton, Partner and Global Co-Chair of International Arbitration, Paul Hastings LLP
Carlos Felipe Jaramillo, Vice President for the Latin America and the Caribbean Region, The World Bank.
2025 Trade Advisory Group Sponsors:
Read
New tariffs risk setbacks in the fight against inflation and will also make it harder for North America to compete against China.
The U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) faces a mandatory review in 2026. Already the three parties are identifying core interests and readying approaches. The United States’ vision for North America has changed, with the use of tariffs as a tool of political and economic coercion, and Canada and Mexico have reacted accordingly.
COA’s Trade Advisory Group actively advocates for USMCA as critical for North American competitiveness. We support negotiations within a coordinated trilateral process at any point prior to the 2026 deadline.
Our activities around USCMA include:
- Briefings by senior Mexican and Canadian officials, including secretaries and ministers, under secretaries, and other senior officials and observers.
- By-invitation activities with senior Congressional representatives including the chair and ranking member of the House trade subcommittee and others.
- Separate events with the U.S., Mexican, and Canadian Ambassadors.
- Panel discussions with private sector leaders and analysts discussing scenarios and options.
A stronger North America will aid U.S. efforts to compete with China, write AS/COA's Eric Farnsworth and Ambassador Earl Anthony Wayne in The Hill.
With or without the United States, hemispheric trade continues to provide opportunities including intra-regional trade and enhanced relations with Asia, Europe, the Middle East, and Africa. COA’s Trade Advisory Group has continued to support regional integration, with a focus on digital trade and other 21st-century trade issues. Council activities on broader Western Hemisphere trade prioritize the expansion of USMCA to include certain nations that prove willing and capable of taking on the higher obligations of the agreement, expansion of CPTPP to include certain Latin American and Caribbean nations, reinvigoration of the Pacific Alliance, and broad-based education regarding the true impact of China’s engagement in the Americas and opportunities for the United States to maintain regional leadership on trade, among other topics.
It's clear the ''America First'' agenda will not ultimately succeed without getting the region right, writes Eric Farnsworth in The National Interest.
This "is a rethinking of what trade really is and the importance of it to the United States," said the AS/COA vice president.
What does the U.S. president's “America First” trade policy mean for the region? AS/COA is monitoring the new administration's approach.