LatinNews Daily - 16 February 2026

Argentina: On 5 February US Trade Representative (USTR) Jamieson Greer joined Argentina’s Foreign Minister Pablo Quirno in signing the US-Argentina Agreement on Reciprocal Trade and Investment (Arti). In a statement, Greer said that the partnership would serve “as a model of how countries in the Americas, from Alaska to Tierra del Fuego, can advance our shared ambitions and safeguard our economic and national security”. The terms of the agreement include Argentina boosting efforts to protect intellectual property; accepting US safety standards for imported goods and agricultural products; preventing digital trade barriers; and improving economic security alignment, labour protections, and customs reforms. The agreement also states that Argentina must “address potential distortionary actions that state-owned enterprises or industrial subsidies have on the bilateral trading relationship”. Additionally, the Office of the USTR notes that Argentina has committed to a framework on critical minerals, ensuring “rules in this sector are fair for U.S. firms”. This was signed the previous day at the US-hosted 2026 critical minerals ministerial summit. The agreement also includes changes to the agricultural sector, with Argentina agreeing to safeguard US exporters’ use of specific meat and cheese product names. The US National Milk Producers Federation (NMPF) and US Dairy Export Council (USDEC) celebrated the deal. Under the agreement, Argentina will also open its market to US poultry products within one year and simplify red tape for US exporters of beef and pork products. The US Cattlemen’s Association (USCA) acknowledged the reciprocal design of the deal but underscored the need to ensure that US cattle producers “are protected”. Other US cattle lobby groups, such as R-CALF USA, were more critical, rejecting the deal due to increased imports of Argentine beef. The agreement will provide preferential access to the US market to an “unprecedented” 100,000 tonnes of Argentine beef.