Secretary of Economy of Mexico confirms that the tariffs imposed by Donald Trump remain
Marcelo Ebrard, Mexico's Secretary of Economy, affirms that the tariffs imposed by Donald Trump on its imports will not disappear
Completely eliminate the tariffs now This is not a viable goal for the Mexican government, and during the second round of talks related to the review of the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA), the objective now is to reduce them to the minimum possible, as it is accepted that global trade has changed and is no longer governed by the traditional free trade model. As anticipated by Jamieson Greer, the United States Trade Representative, the continuation of tariffs for Mexico under Section 232 is practically a foregone conclusion, to which Ebrard simply acknowledged that the trade scheme based on total openness is unlikely to return. “We shouldn't be nostalgic for a time when there were no tariffs. The new system will include tariffs and rules of origin, which are sometimes more important,” the Mexican official stated. Given the new trade scenario, sectors such as automotive, as well as the steel and aluminum industries, will be priorities in the negotiations proposed by Mexico to its northern neighbor.
The Secretary of Economy even stated that the automotive industry has already achieved a reduction in tariffs compared to the 25% tariff proposed months ago by the United States, which is levied on most countries.
“Mexico has already explained its position to the United States: the ideal scenario is to operate with the fewest possible tariffs and maintain the most open trade possible,” he emphasized.
The point of contention is that, although formal negotiations on the USMCA don't begin until the last week of May,For companies operating in Mexico, the position taken by their government to accept the new rules of the game imposed by Washington will represent billions of dollars to cover if they remain interested in accessing the U.S. market.
“It won't be easy, it will be difficult, complex. There is a lot of uncertainty, but we are going to make a great effort,” Ebrard said regarding the negotiations on the USMCA.
For Mexico, the tariffs under Section 32 of the U.S. Trade Act imply tariffs of 50% on steel and aluminum, and 25% on automobiles.