Mexico offers U.S. an alternative to tariff hikes on Mexican goods

Alsharq Tribune-AFP 

Mexico has proposed to the United States an alternative to tariff hikes on Mexican products, President Claudia Sheinbaum said Thursday.

"We made a very concrete proposal, and they are analyzing it, and we hope this will help us resolve the issue moving forward," Sheinbaum said at her daily press conference as U.S. President Donald Trump threatened to impose a 30 percent tariff on Mexican imports starting Aug. 1.

The proposal, based on the government's Plan Mexico, seeks to reduce the trade deficits between the two countries without jeopardizing nearshoring or exports, the president said, adding that Mexico will wait through early next week for Washington's response.

They "do not want this gap between what the United States exports to Mexico and what Mexico exports to the United States to continue to increase," Sheinbaum explained, suggesting that the trade deficits, among the Trump administration's main concerns, can be reduced through different mechanisms with the level of exports maintained.

She clarified that a good portion of Mexico's exports to the United States are manufactured by U.S. companies, enjoying preferential tariffs within the framework of the current United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) on free trade, due to be reviewed in 2026.

Still, the trade gap should not be resolved at the cost of Mexico, said Sheinbaum, hoping the ongoing talks with U.S. commerce and treasury officials will reach a "good agreement."

"If necessary, we would make the call" and speak with Trump directly, she noted.