TMTPOST -- U.S. President Donald Trump on Wednesday announced a 90-day reprieve on higher tariffs ahead of his self-imposed August 1 deadline, giving his country’s largest trading partner time to reach a trade deal.
Credit：Xinhua News Agency
Trump said in a social media post that he agreed to extend the current tariffs on Mexico for 90 days after a “very successful” phone call with Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum. The extension means the current tariffs on U.S. imports from Mexico will maintain beyond the August 1 deadline for higher reciprocal tariffs.
“Mexico will continue to pay a 25% Fentanyl Tariff, 25% Tariff on Cars, and 50% Tariff on Steel, Aluminum, and Copper,” Trump wrote in the post on his platform Truth Social, adding that “Mexico has agreed to immediately terminate its Non Tariff Trade Barriers, of which there were many.” He didn’t elaborate the alleged trade barrier that Mexico vowed to remove.
The decision to grant a 90-day reprieve was made considering complexity of an agreement with Mexico, according to Trump. “The complexities of a Deal with Mexico are somewhat different than other Nations because of both the problems, and assets, of the Border,” the president said in the post.
Trump in the post suggested the extension of current tariff rates for Mexico will allow for more time, maybe nor more than 90 days,for negotiations. “We will be talking to Mexico over the next 90 Days with the goal of signing a Trade Deal somewhere within the 90 Day period of time, or longer,” he said.
Trump said a group of senior officials also joined the call meeting, including U.S. Vice President JD Vance, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer, Chief of Staff Susie Wiles and Chief of Staff for Policy, and United States Homeland Security Advisor Stephen Miller. He also said U.S. and Mexico will continue cooperation on the border issue to address concerns over drugs, drug distribution and illegal immigration into the U.S.
The announced extension temporarily avoided a 30% tariff on most Mexican non-automotive and non-metal goods compliant with the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) starting Friday. In a letter sent to Sheinbaum on July 12, Trump threatened to impose a 30% duty on Mexican imports as of August 1. He criticized Mexico for its "failure to stop the cartels" from smuggling drugs, including fentanyl, into the United States, and accused the country of not doing enough to cooperate with Washington in curbing illegal immigration.
Following Trump’s announcement on Thursday, Sheinbaum in her post on X echoed Trump, stating they had a “very good call.” “We avoided the tariff increase announced for tomorrow and secured 90 days to build a long-term agreement through dialogue,” she posted.
Sheinbaum later that day at a conference denied her country would pay a 25% tariff for fentanyl trafficking at the border, and clarified that levy applies to goods that are outside the USMCA tready. “Remember that the statement made by the United States Government in the second negotiation is that the 25% that is outside the treaty, their argument for that 25% has to do with the issue of fentanyl,” she clarified.
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