Trump’s midterm defeat does not shield Mexico from tariffs or guarantee USMCA, Digi Mart USA News (Mexico City): Although Democrats swept the U.S. midterm elections and wrested control of Congress from Republicans, this does not mean Mexico has escaped Donald Trump’s tariffs or the difficulties facing the review of the Mexico-United States-Canada Agreement (USMCA), according to a report published by Proceso.
The results of the November 3 elections represent a political blow to the Republican president, who would face greater obstacles in advancing his decisions in Congress. The Confederation of National Chambers of Commerce, Services and Tourism (Concanaco Servytur) presented an analysis stating that this does not mean commercial pressures against Mexico have come to an end.
“A change in the political balance should not be interpreted as an automatic solution to tariffs or to the challenges of the USMCA review,” the business organization said in a statement. The analysis is linked to an economic assessment by Integralia, which predicts that Trump could harden his international policy in response to the difficulties he would face advancing his agenda within the United States, meaning tariffs could continue.
According to the report, the president still has mechanisms to maintain economic pressure while the review of the trade agreement, which underpins much of North American economic relations, proceeds.
Concanaco Servytur called on Mexico to “prioritarily” avoid placing trust in the election results and instead strengthen its relationships with both Democrats and Republicans, while seeking allies among U.S. businesses that also depend on bilateral trade.
The aim is for Mexico not to rely solely on negotiations with the Trump administration, but also to pursue agreements with U.S. sectors that could be affected by tariffs and uncertainty over the future of the USMCA.
“Mexico must arrive at and continue at every table with its own agenda, identify what the counterpart needs and build agreements that generate verifiable benefits for our economy. A political opportunity becomes an economic opportunity when there is preparation to take advantage of it,” said Octavio de la Torre, president of Concanaco Servytur.
The Business Coordinating Council (CCE) also commented on social media about the U.S. election results, saying the “priority is to strengthen the bilateral relationship” to promote better trade conditions for Mexico within the USMCA framework.
“The economic integration of North America goes beyond electoral cycles. From the CCE, our commitment is to keep working with the U.S.
government and elected representatives,” the council posted.
