Trade Cases

Mexico Considering Retaliatory Steel & Aluminum Tariffs
Written by Sandy Williams
November 29, 2018
Tariffs on U.S. steel and aluminum exports to Mexico may be coming if the Trump administration does not drop its Section 232 tariffs on Mexican imports, says Mexican steel association Canacero.
“They already agreed, this government and the incoming one, that we will apply resounding mirror measures,” Canacero Vice President Raul Gutierrez said at a news conference Tuesday at the Institute for Industrial Development and Economic Growth (IDIC).
Canacero stated in a letter to the current and incoming administration earlier this month that it was “not feasible to have a new agreement such as the USMCA, which seeks to promote regional integration and at the same time limit trade in key sectors for Mexico.”
The letter continued, “When markets are attacked, inevitably it ends up eliminating the generation of value of regional integration.”
Mexico’s new government under Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador demands tariffs be lifted before Mexico will sign the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement.
Officials from the U.S. and Mexico have been working on a deal that would substitute quotas for the tariffs. Mexico advocates a quota of 130 to 150 percent of the country’s average exports from 2015 to 2017. The U.S., however, is reportedly seeking a quota below Mexico’s current export level.
Sen. Rob Portman (R-OH), a member of the Senate Finance Committee and a former U.S. Trade Representative, cast doubt on the USMCA signing that is expected to take place at the G20 summit in Buenos Aires, Argentina.
“I think in the next few days we’re going to find out how that gets resolved because my sense is that Mexico might not sign the agreement at the end of this week unless there’s some resolution on steel and aluminum, at least as to Mexico,” said Portman in remarks at the Hudson Institute on Wednesday.
Even if Canada and Mexico sign the agreement, it will still need to be ratified by Congress, which may not occur until next year when the Democrats take over the House. Implementing the legislation will be challenging, but will have bipartisan support, said Portman.
“I think we can get it done,” he said. “Some, as you know, push to get it done quicker — including me — but that’s not likely.”

Sandy Williams
Read more from Sandy WilliamsLatest in Trade Cases

Breaking News: Trump’s ‘Liberation Day’ brings 10% baseline tariffs; steel, aluminum, and autos/parts excluded
President Trump’s promised “Liberation Day” has arrived, with a 10% minimum tariff on imports. But there are some very important exceptions: The United States’ USMCA partners, Canada and Mexico, are excluded from the reciprocal tariffs for now. In addition, steel, aluminum, as well as autos and auto parts are excluded from the reciprocal tariffs. That’s […]

Price on Trade: Auto tariffs, auto parts, and Hyundai – a world of rapid changes
Trump's new auto tariffs will apply to passenger vehicles (including sedans, sport utility vehicles, crossover utility vehicles, minivans, and cargo vans), light trucks, and certain automobile parts (including engines and engine parts, transmissions and powertrain parts, and electrical components).

CRU: Canacero urges Mexico-US partnership to fend off Asian steel imports
Victor Cairo, head of Mexico’s steel sector body Canacero and CEO of ArcelorMittal Mexico, says he is confident negotiations between the Mexican and US governments planned for April 2 will lead to the creation of a regional block to substitute imports, especially from Asia.
US chassis makers seek duties on imports from Mexico, Thailand, and Vietnam
Upon the request of US chassis manufacturers, the Commerce Department this week initiated investigations into the alleged dumping and subsidization of chassis imported from Mexico, Thailand, and Vietnam.

European Commission eyes stricter limit on tariff-free steel imports
The European Commmission is reducing the amount of tariff-free foreign steel that can enter the EU.