“We’re going to wait until April 2 and then decide whether or not to impose reciprocal tariffs, in the case of aluminium and steel,” Sheinbaum said.
Mexico is a major supplier of steel to the United States.
The Mexico president has vowed to seek a negotiated solution with Trump on tariffs.
“We hope that since we have a trade agreement and there are no Mexican tariffs on the United States, there will be no reciprocal tariffs,” she added.
Last week, the US president had granted another month of temporary tariff relief on most imports from Mexico after Sheinbaum spoke to Trump on the phone.
Steep Tariffs
The steep 25 per cent tariffs came into effect on Wednesday with no exemptions despite countries’ efforts to avert them.
The move is aimed at protecting the declining US steel industry as it faces growing competition, especially from Asia.
The United States imports around half of the steel and aluminium used in the country to make items ranging from cars to planes to soda cans.
The European Commission swiftly unveiled retaliation starting in April, while Canada announced additional tariffs on some US goods and China vowed “all necessary measures” in response — as Washington edged toward an all-out trade war with allies and competitors alike.
Canada, which is heavily exposed to the US steel and aluminum levies, announced additional tariffs of CAN$29.8 billion ($20.7 billion) on US goods, with the levies coming into force on Thursday.
But Canada’s incoming Prime Minister Mark Carney later said that he was ready to negotiate directly with Trump a renewed trade accord to avoid further economic tussling.
Mexico, US tariffs, steel, aluminum, trade war, Donald Trump, Claudia Sheinbaum
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