US President Donald Trump’s tariff wall due to forced labor poses a new challenge for Mexico. Washington imposed, starting this Friday, a new round of tariffs on more than 60 economies, replacing the universal 10% tariff that expired this week. In Mexico’s case, despite the USMCA, Mexican exports outside the USMCA will have to pay a 10% tariff. Faced with this commercial setback, Mexico’s president, Claudia Sheinbaum, has declared that it was a unilateral decision by the US and that her Government will seek to maintain its preferential status compared to other nations. “What we are looking for are better conditions for Mexico and for there not to be a new tariff, for there to be no more surprises of new tariffs in this new framework that exists to give guarantees to investors,” she indicated in her usual morning conference.
The president acknowledged that negotiating with the US is complex due to Trump’s protectionist vision; however, she highlighted that Mexico maintained the same 10% tariff for shipments that do not comply with the USMCA. Separately, the country pays sectoral tariffs on automobiles, steel, and other raw materials, such as copper. “What we are looking for is to maintain a preferential status compared to the rest of the world. At this moment, we have it because what is subject to tariffs, as of today, are vehicles, steel, aluminum, and what is exported outside the trade agreement. We are working to reach a long-term agreement,” she said.
Sheinbaum added that the USMCA review is being carried out based on a new US vision of protecting its economy and imposing tariffs on the rest of the world, including Mexico. In this process, Washington wants to raise the rules of origin in strategic sectors, and against this backdrop, the Latin American country wants these rules to be regional and, therefore, represent a benefit for Mexico. L
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Latin America’s second-largest economy faces this new commercial challenge amidst the USMCA review. This week, a US delegation, led by US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer, met with Sheinbaum and her economic team to advance the renegotiation of the trade agreement. The working sessions are the first face-to-face meeting between the countries after the United States’ refusal to extend the agreement for another 16 years. While the US seeks for its southern neighbor to buy more US inputs and thus reduce its trade deficit, the Mexican government still advocates for regional integration. “Mexico’s prosperity helps the United States; it is essential that there is prosperity in both countries. The negotiation is not trivial,” she concluded.
