A few days before the United States imposes a 25% tariff on various Mexican products, which was postponed for a month, the president of Mexico, Claudia Sheinbaum , is seeking to have a new call with her counterpart from the northern neighbor, Donald Trump , to reach an agreement; meanwhile, the tenant of the White House has assured that his tariff plan “is moving forward.”
Among the attempts to stop this measure, Sheinbaum indicated in her morning press conference that she will seek a new telephone conversation with Trump this week to avoid the imposition of tariffs on the import of Mexican goods on March 4 .
“We must review everything that President Trump says, that is why I say that we must always keep a cool head and not take isolated phrases. Obviously, the agreement must be closed this week. Eight days from now is the date that we propose for the end of this suspension period that was agreed upon in that phone call,” said the president.
Sheinbaum stressed that it is important to reach an agreement this week and that priority will be given to the Treaty between Mexico, the United States and Canada (T-MEC) .
For his part, Donald Trump continues with the threat. The president of the United States seems not to have been convinced by the agreement reached on February 3, in which Mexico committed to sending 10,000 members of the National Guard to the northern border to prevent “excessive” illegal immigration, as well as the trafficking of fentanyl to the United States.
Seven days before the tariff measure is likely to materialize, Trump is standing firm. On February 24, he announced that the tariffs are going ahead, in response at a press conference at the White House with the president of France, Emmanuel Macron .
It is worth remembering that one of the first actions that Trump announced after his inauguration as President of the United States was the signing of executive orders for the implementation of 25% tariffs on Mexico , his main commercial seller, which has been one of his most recurrent threats, since he has used it in his campaign and in 2018, during his first term as President of the American Union.
According to Marcelo Ebrard , head of the Ministry of Economy (SE) , the imposition of 25% tariffs on Mexico would be a “strategic error” that would affect millions of families in the United States , as well as companies in that country.
At the morning press conference on January 31, the federal official added that the American consumer would be affected because there would be less availability of products, because “purchases are obviously contracting. In addition, it would generate possible disruptions in supply chains, “because such high tariffs have an expansive impact.”
There, Ebrard indicated that the tariffs would have repercussions on various Mexican industries, such as vehicles, computers, screens, refrigerators, beer, meat, as well as fruits and vegetables.
If tariffs are imposed, Mexico’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) would fall by almost 4% , estimated Rolando Paniagua , director of business expansion at Banco Base , who said that if this measure were to be implemented, “it would put the Mexican economy in serious trouble.”
Tariffs on China as a bargaining chip for Trump
One of the measures that the Mexican government is considering to avoid the 25% tariffs imposed by the United States is to impose tariffs on Chinese products.
Claudia Sheinbaum explained that Mexico does not have a free trade agreement with that Asian country, which would allow, under the rules of the World Trade Organization (WTO) , the imposition of tariffs on Chinese goods.
In this regard, he reiterated that the priority is the USMCA and the trade relationship with the partner countries that make up this trilateral agreement.
Sheinbaum indicated that a team from the Ministry of Economy remains in Washington to advance talks with the U.S. government to avoid 25% tariffs on various Mexican products.
According to the SE, trade between Mexico and China registered a growth of 12.3% in the first half of 2024, in addition to reaching 20% of total Mexican imports, making that Asian country Mexico’s second largest trading partner.
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