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Sheinbaum and Trump discuss migration and security after tariff threat

November 27, 2024 , ,

 

"I had an excellent conversation with President Donald Trump. We discussed the Mexican strategy on the migration phenomenon and I shared that caravans (of migrants) are not arriving at the northern border because they are being assisted in Mexico,"

 the leftist leader posted on her X account.

 "We also discussed strengthening collaboration on security issues within the framework of our sovereignty and the campaign we are carrying out in the country to prevent the consumption of fentanyl," he added.

Sheinbaum had anticipated that she would seek a call with Trump, after the Republican threatened to impose 25% tariffs on Mexico and Canada - his partners in the T-MEC trade agreement - when he takes office for a second term on January 20.

According to Trump, this measure will be maintained until what he called the "invasion" of drugs and "illegal immigrants" to the United States is stopped. The new taxes would be extended to China.

The Mexican president sent a letter to the tycoon on Tuesday in which she warned that migration and drug use are not resolved "with threats" and that if the United States imposes tariffs, Mexico would take a similar measure.

Mexico is the main commercial partner of the United States, where it sends just over 80% of its exports.

Early Wednesday, Sheinbaum's government doubled down by pointing out that the United States would "shoot itself in the foot" with a generalized tariff.

"The impact on companies is enormous. (...) Around 400,000 jobs would be lost" in the United States, said the Secretary of Economy, Marcelo Ebrard, in a press conference, based on a calculation based on figures from automotive companies in that country that operate in Mexico.

Trump's announcements had already motivated a talk on Tuesday between the president-elect and the Canadian Prime Minister, Justin Trudeau.

"Shot in the foot"

Ebrard also said that the tariffs would directly impact American consumers.

He gave as an example the market for pickup trucks sold in the United States, 88% of which come from Mexico. Customs duties would raise the price of these vehicles to the consumer by $3,000, he said.

"The impact of this measure, (the) main one, is against the consumer in the United States (...). That is why we say that it is a shot in the foot," added the official during Sheinbaum's usual press conference.

Ebrard said that Mexico will propose policies to turn North America into the "safest, most productive and competitive" trading block in the world.

The approach is based on three axes, which include "security, migration and governance," to promote job creation, investment and the optimization of regional supply chains, he said.

More inflation

Recognizing that there is "uncertainty," the Bank of Mexico (Banxico, central bank) said on Wednesday that it is analyzing options to deal with the possible imposition of tariffs on Mexico.

"We should not jump to conclusions, but that does not mean that we are not considering different scenarios so that at the time we can consider the implications that it could have," said the governor of the central bank, Victoria Rodríguez, during the presentation of a quarterly inflation report.

Analysts from the private bank Citibanamex warned in a report that the imposition of tariffs would generate inflation in the United States, "in addition to a depreciation of the Mexican peso and a decrease in (economic) activity in Mexico."

Among the main products that Mexico sends to the United States are automobiles and vehicle parts, as well as accessories for machinery.

Mexico, the United States and Canada have had a trade agreement for three decades that was renegotiated during Trump's first term (2017-2021), who claimed that it had harmed American companies, especially automotive companies.