Ebrard says Democratic midterm win will not change U.S. tariff policy toward Mexico, Digi Mart USA News: Marcelo Ebrard, Mexico’s Secretary of Economy, admitted on Wednesday, November 4, that a Democratic victory in the U.S. elections will not change tariff policy toward Mexico.
He stressed that the power to impose tariffs rests mainly with President Donald Trump, so the new makeup of the House of Representatives and the Senate does not automatically mean a change in tariffs.
Ebrard said, “The powers over tariffs correspond, or largely belong, to the president, so that does not change.” He distinguished between tariff policy and the review of the Mexico-United States-Canada Agreement (USMCA), a process in which modifications could still be agreed, although he said none has been proposed so far.
“The treaty may change, but it is too early to say that,” he said. Ebrard recalled that Mexico and the United States agreed to extend the USMCA until 2036 with annual reviews, which avoided the worst-case scenario that the agreement would stop being in force.
The 2026 review is not yet complete, as a fourth round of talks is pending and was postponed until after the Tuesday, November 3 elections. He argued that “it is very expensive to put a tariff on something because you are going to hit one of their companies,” noting that tariffs affect U.S.
companies that maintain operations and supply chains integrated with Mexico.
Analysts cited in the report say the electoral results make it very unlikely that major legislation will advance before the current Republican-controlled Congress ends its work at year’s end. Lawmakers are expected to rely on a temporary funding measure to avoid a government shutdown, postponing the confrontation until spring, while the debt ceiling issue is expected to be left for next year.
The report also says Democrats are likely to wait until next year, when they will have greater negotiating power, before pursuing a partisan budget. Possible areas for bipartisan agreement next year include eliminating the debt ceiling, increasing defense and domestic spending, renewing Obamacare subsidies, limiting prescription drug prices, and reducing tariffs through a series of new trade agreements.
