Mexican President Announces Plan To Counter Trump Tariffs

Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum announced on Thursday a series of measures to counter the tariffs imposed by U.S. counterpart Donald Trump.

The plan doesn't include counter-measures, but rather seeks to boost local industries to reduce reliance on the country.

"It is the path that will lead to a Mexico with more well-paying jobs, less poverty and inequality, more investment and production, more innovation, less carbon," Sheinbaum said.

The Mexican president went on to list 18 actions to that end, including boosting the food and energy industries, seeking to become self-sufficient in both. When it comes to the latter, the government will seek to increase oil and diesel production by 30% by 2030. It will also look to reduce natural gas imports and boost domestic production.

The Sheinbaum administration will also seek to increase public works, including expanding train tracks and building roads. Moreover, it will build more public housing and give more mortgages, a measure expected to create hundreds of thousands of jobs this year.

The government will also seek to expand the production of vehicles, pharmaceutical components, and fertilizers, and collaborate with business leaders to boost job creation.

Sheinbaum rejected imposing counter-tariffs as she seeks an amicable relation with the Trump administration. "There can always be tariffs on one country or the other, but what's most important to me, my responsibility as president, is the people of Mexico and that of course is tied with the relations with the U.S.," she said on Tuesday.

An economic expert analyzed that Mexico is breathing a "big sigh of relief" as the country is so far managing to avoid the full wrath of the decision.

Sergio Luna, chief economist of Grupo Financiero Mifel, noted in Americas Quarterly that the country and Canada are "just" seeing 25% tariffs on imports not covered by the USMCA. That led the country's currency, the peso, to be the third-best performer versus the U.S. dollar on Wednesday after Trump's announcement.

Luna did acknowledge that the country will be worse off than before the announcement, highlighting that the country has a "very open economy," which is "heavily reliant on global value chains that are geared to the U.S., the destination of 80% of Mexican exports.