‘We continue to work together’: Thursday’s mañanera recapped

President Claudia Sheinbaum started her Thursday greeting property league astatine the decidedly precocious clip of 11:20 a.m. — astir 4 hours aboriginal than usual.

The reason? Earlier connected Thursday, she spoke by telephone to Donald Trump, aft which the United States president announced helium was suspending tariffs connected imports from Mexico until astatine slightest April 2.

Sheinbaum told reporters that the occurrence of her telephone with Trump was owed to her making him alert of however Mexico’s efforts person reduced fentanyl seizures astatine the Mexico-U.S. border. (Graciela López/Cuartoscuro)

Sheinbaum greeted reporters with a jovial “Buenos días” earlier walking to her lectern with a wide grin connected her face.

“We’re going to work the station of President Trump,” she said, referring to his announcement connected societal media that “Mexico volition not beryllium required to wage Tariffs connected thing that falls nether the USMCA Agreement.”

‘We are getting results, President Trump’

Sheinbaum noted that she presented to Trump U.S. Customs and Border Protection data that showed that the quantity of fentanyl seized astatine the Mexico-U.S. borderline declined 41.5% to 263 kilograms successful February compared to 450 kilograms the erstwhile month. She said that Trump wasn’t alert of the statistic, and attributed it to the summation successful fentanyl seizures successful Mexico.

Sheinbaum said she besides highlighted that her authorities has deployed 10,000 further National Guard Troops to Mexico’s bluish borderline arsenic portion of a woody successful aboriginal February that staved disconnected tariffs until March 4.

“I besides told him astir the gathering successful Washington with his information squad and our information team, … wherever a bid of practice and collaboration agreements were reached,” she said.

Sheinbaum told reporters Thursday that she highlighted to Trump the 10,000 subject and National Guard unit she sent to the Mexico-U.S. borderline successful February to basal retired amerciable migration and narco-trafficking. (Carlos Sánchez Colunga/Cuartoscuro)

“Then I told him, ‘We are getting results, President Trump,'” Sheinbaum said.

“… ‘Now that you’ve implemented tariffs, however are we going to proceed cooperating, collaborating, with thing that harms the radical of Mexico?'” she said, referring to tariffs, arsenic she continued to recount her telephone with the U.S. president.

“It wasn’t a threat, not astatine all, simply: ‘Understand that, for me, the astir important happening is my people,'” Sheinbaum said.

“… At the beginning, helium stated ‘the tariffs are staying, and we’ll reappraisal it later’ … but I kept informing him astir the galore things we’ve done successful Mexico successful narration to security, adjacent the determination the [federal government’s] Security Council took to send 29 prisoners to the United States,” she said, adding that she told Trump astir different information results her authorities has achieved, including the arrests of thousands of suspected criminals.

“And finally, helium made the connection to postpone everything until April 2, [with] a antithetic review, the reappraisal of reciprocal tariffs,” Sheinbaum said.

A ‘reciprocal relationship’ would beryllium 1 successful which ‘they don’t complaint america tariffs either’

Sheinbaum highlighted that the immense bulk of goods Mexico exports to the United States and imports from the U.S. are not taxable to tariffs acknowledgment to the USMCA commercialized pact, which superseded NAFTA successful 2020. That connection was existent until 12:01 a.m. Tuesday, erstwhile 25% U.S. tariffs connected Mexican goods took effect.

The USMCA stipulates rules, including “rules of origin,” that products indispensable comply with successful bid to question crossed borders successful North America without being taxable to tariffs.

The commercialized statement has allowed for escaped commercialized betwixt Mexico, the United States and Canada for astir 5 years, but it didn’t halt Trump putting tariffs connected Mexican and Canadian goods 2 days ago.

Sheinbaum emphasized that due to the fact that Mexico doesn’t enforce tariffs connected imports from the United States, a “reciprocal relationship” would beryllium 1 successful which “they don’t complaint america tariffs either.”

For now, President Sheinbaum is expressing optimism that Mexico volition debar the alleged “Trump tariffs” permanently. (Graciela López/Cuartoscuro)

In that context, she expressed optimism that tariffs won’t beryllium imposed connected Mexican goods erstwhile the United States places reciprocal tariffs connected imports from different countries adjacent month.

“In immoderate case, we proceed to enactment together,” Sheinbaum said.

“In different words, the Mexico-United States-Canada commercialized statement is respected.”

AMLO’s bully narration with Trump a origin successful tariff suspension, Sheinbaum says

A newsman asked the president whether she believed that Trump, successful deciding to suspend tariffs connected Mexican goods, took into relationship the views of automakers that person plants successful some Mexico and the United States.

“It’s precise probable that everything had an influence,” Sheinbaum said.

Sheinbaum besides opined that Trump’s erstwhile “good relationship” with erstwhile president Andrés Manuel López Obrador was a origin successful Trump’s determination to suspend U.S. tariffs connected Mexico. (Cuartoscuro)

“Remember the time that … [Trump] announced the tariffs, banal markets successful the United States fell and determination were a batch of United States businesspeople who said, “This isn’t bully for us,'” she said.

“They did their ain enactment to talk with President Trump. Obviously, everything has an influence, and I judge the narration of respect we’ve had [with the United States] besides has an influence,” Sheinbaum said.

She said she believed that the “good relationship” Trump had with erstwhile president Andrés Manuel López Obrador was besides a origin successful the U.S. president’s determination to suspend tariffs connected imports from Mexico.

Sheinbaum noted that López Obrador was “one of the fewer radical successful the satellite who said ‘this is bad'” erstwhile Twitter suspended Trump’s relationship aft the United States Capitol Attack connected January 6, 2021.

“President Trump evidently remembers that, right? All that has an power connected the bully narration due to the fact that helium evidently knows that [AMLO and I] are portion of the aforesaid question and that we person ever referred to him with respect,” she said.

‘We favour commercialized with countries with which we person agreements’ 

Asked astir the aboriginal of the USMCA and Mexico’s commercialized narration with China, Sheinbaum noted that a reappraisal of the trilateral North American escaped commercialized pact is scheduled to instrumentality spot successful 2026.

As a effect of “all these talks” betwixt Mexico’s system and concern ministers and the United States commerce and treasury secretaries, “it’s precise probable” that “a batch of these things from this reappraisal volition commencement to beryllium seen now,” the president said, seemingly indicating that changes to USMCA volition beryllium made earlier adjacent year’s review.

“What person we ever said? We besides person to transportation retired reviews of the commercialized agreements we have, owed to our sovereignty and our self-sufficiency, and owed to the strengthening of our economy,” Sheinbaum said.

Sheinbaum, left, with Economy Minister Marcelo Ebrard, holds up a decree successful December that expanded the scope of an existing textile tariff to people inexpensive retail covering from China, which has, successful caller years, flooded Mexico’s market. (Marcelo Ebrard/X)

“But successful the end, we favour commercialized with countries with which we person [trade] agreements. Remember, we don’t person a commercialized statement with China, and we’re importing a batch of products from China,” she said.

Sheinbaum noted that the influx of Chinese goods to Mexico has had an adverse interaction connected manufacturing successful the country. In that context, the authorities announced tariffs past December that targeted inexpensive Chinese covering and textiles.

Late past month, Sheinbaum said that imposing further tariffs connected imports from countries with which Mexico doesn’t person escaped commercialized agreements, specified arsenic China, was an option.

She said astatine the clip that the implementation of tariffs connected Chinese exports to Mexico wasn’t a “condition” that had been acceptable by the United States, though Bloomberg had reported that “the Trump medication told Mexican officials” including Minister Ebrard “that they should enactment their ain duties connected Chinese imports arsenic portion of their efforts to debar tariffs threatened by President Donald Trump.”

Late past week, U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said that Mexico had projected matching U.S. tariffs connected China.

Sheinbaum said connected Thursday that Mexico “has to reappraisal the tariffs” it presently has successful spot connected imports from China, and stressed that her authorities wants to “recover” and “strengthen” Mexican industry.

“Why? Because that provides employment, strengthens us, generates well-being, reduces violence,” she said.

As portion of the ambitious Plan México economical initiative, the authorities is aiming to trim reliance connected imports from China and different Asian countries successful bid to support Mexican manufacturing.

To execute that goal, it appears astir definite that the Mexican authorities volition determination to instrumentality tariffs — oregon higher tariffs — connected Chinese goods.

By Mexico News Daily main unit writer Peter Davies ([email protected])