Trump gives Mexico more time for trade agreement

President Trump said that he would give Mexico more time to seal a trade deal and avoid higher tariffs. After a phone call with Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum, Trump wrote in a social-media post that he agreed to extend for 90 days the existing tariffs on Mexican goods.

He said a 25% fentanyl tariff, a 25% tariff on cars and a 50% tariff on steel, aluminum and copper would remain in place. Most tariffs exclude Mexican exports that comply with USMCA rules.

Trump’s trade-deal deadline for many countries to clinch agreements or face tariff hikes expires just after midnight. Mexico was among the most important trading partners that hadn’t yet secured a pact.

And after a flurry of trade news Wednesday, involving South Korea, India, Brazil, and others, Trump cast doubt on prospects for a deal with Canada. He said its support for a Palestinian state “will make it very hard for us to make a Trade Deal with them.”

It looks like Mr Trump is giving the United States’ other neighbor some leeway to wiggle out of a hike on tariffs, provided that they are ready to make a trade deal that the President sees as beneficial.

With Donald Trump, nothing is off the table, but he is for now giving Mexico a chance to avoid the pain of a tariff hike.