Most US trade remains duty-free after Mexico secures a 90-day extension on Trump’s most recent tariff threat

Mexico has avoided the implementation of a 30% tariff connected its exports to the United States that was scheduled to instrumentality effect this Friday Aug. 1

President Claudia Sheinbaum and United States President Donald Trump announced that the projected work wouldn’t instrumentality effect connected Friday aft they spoke by telephone connected Thursday morning.

“We had a precise bully telephone with the president of the United States, Donald Trump. We avoided the tariff summation announced for time and secured 90 days to physique a semipermanent statement done dialogue,” Sheinbaum wrote connected societal media.

On his societal media site, Truth Social, Trump said that his telephone with Sheinbaum was “very palmy successful that, much and more, we are getting to cognize and recognize each other.”

“The complexities of a Deal with Mexico are somewhat antithetic than different Nations due to the fact that of some the problems, and assets, of the Border. We person agreed to extend, for a 90 Day period, the nonstop aforesaid Deal arsenic we had for the past abbreviated play of time, namely, that Mexico volition proceed to wage a 25% Fentanyl Tariff, 25% Tariff connected Cars, and 50% Tariff connected Steel, Aluminum, and Copper,” helium wrote.

“Additionally, Mexico has agreed to instantly terminate its Non Tariff Trade Barriers, of which determination were many. We volition beryllium talking to Mexico implicit the adjacent 90 Days with the extremity of signing a Trade Deal determination wrong the 90 Day play of time, oregon longer,” Trump said.

Tuvimos una muy buena llamada con el presidente de Estados Unidos, Donald Trump. Evitamos el aumento de aranceles anunciado para mañana y logramos 90 días para construir un acuerdo de largo plazo a partir del diálogo.

Me acompañaron Juan Ramón de la Fuente, secretario de… pic.twitter.com/in3W4eAICN

— Claudia Sheinbaum Pardo (@Claudiashein) July 31, 2025

He besides said that “there volition beryllium continued practice connected the Border arsenic it relates to each aspects of Security, including Drugs, Drug Distribution, and Illegal Immigration into the United States.”

Status quo maintained; astir commercialized with US is tariff-free 

The “25% fentanyl tariff” Trump referred to is simply a work connected non-USMCA compliant goods that took effect successful March.

Economy Minister Marcelo Ebrard said this week that 84% of Mexico’s commercialized with its bluish neighbour complies with the USMCA and is truthful tariff-free.

U.S. contented successful vehicles made successful Mexico is exempt from the United States’ 25% car tariff, lowering the effectual work connected Mexican cars to 15% connected average, according to Ebrard.

It was uncertain whether the 30% work projected by Trump would person applied to each imports from Mexico, oregon conscionable those that don’t comply with the rules of the USMCA, the three-way escaped commercialized pact that includes the United States, Mexico and Canada.

The U.S. president didn’t supply immoderate clarity connected the contented successful his Truth Social station connected Thursday morning.

Trump’s missive announcing the 30% tariff menace did not specify whether goods covered by the USMCA escaped commercialized statement would beryllium exempt. (Gage Skidmore CC BY-SA 2.0)

Trump informed Sheinbaum of his program to enforce a 30% tariff connected imports from Mexico successful a July 11 letter. A communal mentation of his remarks successful that missive was that the projected work would lone use to non-USMCA compliant products, and would person frankincense accrued the existent complaint by 5 percent points.

In caller days, Sheinbaum expressed assurance that her authorities would scope an statement with the Trump medication to stave disconnected the 30% tariff.

Last month, she projected a “general” oregon “global” statement betwixt Mexico and the United States covering trade, information and migration.

It appears that specified an statement is apt to beryllium reached sometime successful the adjacent 90 days.

‘We achieved a bully agreement’ 

“We achieved a bully agreement,” Sheinbaum said astatine the commencement of her Thursday greeting property conference, held astatine the aboriginal clip of 10 a.m. owed to her telephone with Trump.

She said that she spoke to her U.S. counterpart for astir 40 minutes, and was accompanied by Ebrard, Foreign Affairs Minister Juan Ramón de la Fuente and Deputy Foreign Affairs Minister for North America Roberto Velasco.

Sheinbaum highlighted that the United States existing tariffs would stay successful spot and noted that determination is simply a play of 90 days to proceed engaging with the U.S. authorities successful bid to a found a “longer-term agreement.”

She said that the woody struck with Trump connected Thursday greeting is “important” due to the fact that existing tariffs won’t rise, astatine slightest successful the abbreviated term.

Sheinbaum besides said the woody “protects the USMCA” arsenic the bulk of Mexico’s commercialized with the United States volition stay tariff-free.

Despite a patchwork of tariffs affecting cars, alloy and non-USMCA-compliant goods, astir Mexican exports to the U.S. stay duty-free. (Cuartoscuro)

“That is precise important,” she said, highlighting that the existent 25% tariff — the alleged “fentanyl tariff” — lone applies to products made successful Mexico that don’t comply with the USMCA.

Sheinbaum said that “within the caller commercialized satellite order” established by Trump’s protectionist agenda, Mexico has “the champion statement possible.”

“… Investing successful Mexico continues to beryllium the champion option. We person a precise bully concern successful the look of this caller planetary order,” she said.

” …Our strategy worked,” Sheinbaum said, referring to her government’s commercialized dialog strategy, which included a committedness to enactment to trim Mexico’s ample commercialized surplus with the United States portion cracking down connected the accumulation of fentanyl successful Mexico and ramping up efforts to halt the cause reaching the U.S.

She said that her authorities maintained a “cool head” successful those negotiations, which were led by Ebrard, who has made predominant trips to Washington since Trump’s 2nd word arsenic president began connected Jan. 20.

Mexico News Daily