Mexico Moves To Buy American, Box Out China In USMCA Push

Mexico pledged Monday to buy more American goods and curb Chinese imports as it sought a trade deal with the Trump administration.

Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum said that Mexico planned to increase purchases from the U.S. while reducing imports from other countries as Washington pressed Mexico to shrink America’s trade deficit, according to Reuters. Mexico was seeking an agreement over the future of the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) as negotiations between Washington and Canada remained stalled following a tariff fight.

“The United States is asking for its so-called trade deficit to be reduced,” Sheinbaum said during her Monday press conference, according to Reuters.

Mexico has also moved to curb imports from China. The country imposed tariffs of as much as 50% on a range of products from countries with which it does not have free-trade agreements, including China, at the beginning of 2026. The duties cover products including automobiles, auto parts, textiles, steel and appliances.

The tariffs align with a broader U.S. effort to reduce China’s role in North American supply chains. U.S. and Mexican officials began the USMCA review process in March with an explicit focus on “reducing dependence” on imports from outside North America and strengthening regional supply chains.

The two countries have since discussed economic security, rules of origin, steel, aluminum and automobiles. U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer said following a July negotiating round that the two countries were seeking to strengthen North American manufacturing and address “free-riding” by countries outside the agreement.

Mexico’s approach stands in contrast to Canada, where Prime Minister Mark Carney’s government broke off trade negotiations with Washington in August after the two sides failed to reach an agreement.

The U.S. subsequently imposed 50% tariffs on roughly $20 billion of Canadian products, while Canada responded with retaliatory tariffs that took effect Sept. 8.

Sheinbaum said Friday that her government was still “working towards” a trade agreement with President Donald Trump. Mexico was seeking lower U.S. tariffs on Mexican steel, aluminum and automobiles as part of the negotiations.

The Trump administration declined to renew USMCA in its current form during the agreement’s July 1 joint review, but the pact remains in force while negotiations continue. Greer said the administration would continue negotiating with Mexico and Canada over the agreement’s shortcomings and U.S. trade deficits with both countries.

A Monday analysis from the Center for Strategic and International Studies identified increased Mexican purchases of American agricultural, energy and manufactured goods as one potential concession Washington could seek to reduce the bilateral trade deficit.

The analysis also identified Mexican alignment with U.S. tariffs, investment screening, export controls and other measures targeting nonmarket economies, particularly China, as potentially more consequential demands that could reshape Mexico’s trade relationships outside North America.

Trump negotiated USMCA with Mexico and Canada during his first term to replace the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA). The three countries signed USMCA in November 2018, and Trump signed its implementing legislation in January 2020 with the agreement taking effect on July 1, 2020.