North American Free Trade Agreement

British  

noun

1.  NAFTA.  an international trade agreement between the United States, Canada, and Mexico

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North American Free Trade Agreement Cultural  

1. An agreement between the United States, Canada, and Mexico to establish free trade. It took effect in 1994 and is designed to eliminate trade barriers between the three nations by 2009.

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Many American labor unions oppose NAFTA on the grounds that it takes away jobs from American workers as manufacturers relocate in Mexico to take advantage of cheaper labor. Others argue that free trade creates more jobs in the United States than it destroys.

Example Sentences

The signature accord extended a mostly free-trade regimen between the three nations, replacing the previous North American Free Trade Agreement.

From Los Angeles Times • Feb. 20, 2026

The nearby Ambassador Bridge is nearly 100 years old and not big enough to handle the cross-border trade that has ballooned since the North American Free Trade Agreement, Nafta, came into force in 1994.

From The Wall Street Journal • Feb. 10, 2026

It was a revamp of the North American Free Trade Agreement, which was created in 1994.

From BBC • Mar. 6, 2025

The agreement later included Mexico in 1994, evolving into the North American Free Trade Agreement.

From Seattle Times • Feb. 29, 2024

And we'll get more good American jobs within our own hemisphere through the North American Free Trade Agreement, and through the Enterprise for the Americas Initiative.

From State of the Union Address by Bush, George