WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross on Friday said talks to update the NAFTA trade pact with Mexico and Canada faced timing pressure in 2018 when various regional elections and other trade issues could overshadow negotiations.
"If you get much into 2018, the political calendar will overwhelm the trade calendar," Ross told CNBC in an interview, adding that auto parts are a key issue in the effort to overhaul the North American Free Trade Agreement.
(Reporting by Susan Heavey)
Wilbur L. Ross, Jr. (November 28, 1937) is an American investor known for restructuring failed companies in industries such as steel, coal, telecommunications, foreign investment and textiles. He specializes in leveraged buyouts and distressed businesses. As of August 2014, Forbes magazine lists Ross as one of the world's billionaires with a net worth of $2.9 billion. he has been bottom-fishing in mortgages and mortgage companies. He apparently commands far greater sums than his net worth would suggest.
Early life
Ross was born in Weehawken, New Jersey He drove two hours a day from New Jersey to attend the elite Catholic college preparatory Xavier High School in Manhattan. He ran track and was captain of the rifle team. He earned a B.A. from Yale College, which was also his father's alma mater. At Yale, Ross edited one of the literary magazines and worked at the radio station. Initially, he wanted to be a writer, but after his experience in a fiction class requiring 500 words daily, he concluded that he had "run out of material." His faculty adviser at Yale helped him get his first summer job on Wall Street. He earned his M.B.A. at Harvard Business School. Ross owns 25 Magrittes including some of the artist's most valuable paintings such as The Pilgrim. WL Ross & Co. was acquired by Amvescap (now Invesco) in 2006.
International Steel Group
Wilbur Ross at first had support of the local Steelworkers Union, negotiating a deal with them to "save" Pennsylvania's steel industry.
International Textile Group (ITG)
Ross combined Burlington Industries and Cone Mills in 2004 to form [[Internation
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