US / China / Mexico / Canada │Trade War Begins

The incoming president had threatened to impose those duty on his first day in office, but then backtracked and asked federal agencies to do three business review reports by April 1. However, he has finally decided to keep his campaign promise and start the process as soon as possible. tariff war. Trump has invoked the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) which allows the president to unilaterally manage imports during a crisis.

On this occasion, the entry of fentanyl and immigrants through the southern border have been the pretexts used to invoke the IEEPAThe Canadian government's response was not long in coming. It has already announced that it will impose a 25% tariff on US imports worth $100.000 billion. For its part, the Mexican authorities also plan to apply tariff and non-tariff measures, but have not yet detailed them.

While the vast majority of Canadian and Mexican exports to United States were tariff-free until now, thanks to the protections of the TMEC, Chinese imports into the United States are subject to an average tariff of 14,5%. The new tariffs will raise it to 24,5%, but the impact is estimated to be even greater, as exemptions have also been eliminated for imports under $800, which in 2023 reached $54.500 billion. The products most affected by this measure will be electronics, consumer goods and household goods that are massively purchased by the American middle class. For the moment, the Chinese government has expressed its discontent and has announced that it will take countermeasures and denounce the US tariffs on the WTO.

During Trump's first term, Pekin The US has responded with reciprocal tariffs, but this time it is likely to reduce purchases of key US products such as energy, chemicals and agricultural products, among others. For China, the US market accounts for 14,6% of its exports, compared to 75% for Canada or Mexico, two countries much more exposed to Trump's wrath.

Source: CESCE