Mexico has deployed a high-level delegation led by Foreign Minister Marcelo Ebrard to Washington D.C. to negotiate with the United States on a path forward that avoids tariffs threatened by U.S. President Donald Trump last week.
Trump threatened on Thursday, 30 May to impose a 5-percent tariff on all goods entering the U.S. from Mexico beginning 10 June unless Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador acts to stem immigration through Mexico into the U.S. The tariffs would gradually increase by 5 percent per month up to a ceiling of 25 percent by October if the Mexican government did not act, Trump said in a tweet.
The tariffs would impact all seafood traveling from Mexico into the United States. In 2018, Mexico imported 93,867,651 kilograms of seafood valued at USD 627.7 million (EUR 558.4 million), including significant amounts of shrimp, tuna, scallops, crab, grouper, octopus, and snapper. By volume, shrimp represented the U.S.’ top seafood item from Mexico; The U.S. imported 2,711 metric tons of shrimp valued at USD 24 million (EUR 21.3 million) between January 2018 and January 2019.
“Seafood from Mexico is part of an important supply chain that provides U.S. consumers with variety and value. Denying Americans choices at retailers and restaurants does nothing to address the completely unrelated immigration issues cited in the May 30 White House statement,” National Fisheries Institute President John Connelly said in a statement sent to SeafoodSource. “What’s more, the cost of these tariffs will ultimately be paid by U.S. consumers trying to feed their families, as these taxes are levies paid by the importing country, not the exporting country. America’s seafood community is part of a global network that sends our flatfish from Alaska to Europe, while bringing in shrimp from Mexico. Tariffs disrupt this mutually beneficial exchange, affecting jobs, increasing costs, and making it more difficult for U.S. businesses to compete and plan for the future.”
Jay Timmons, president and chief executive officer of the National Association of Manufacturers, warned the tariffs could cause harm to the U.S. and global economy.
“Intertwining difficult trade, tariff and immigration issues creates a Molotov cocktail” policy that would have “devastating consequences on manufacturers in America,” Timmons said in a statement, according to Politico.
Specifically, the Trump administration is calling for Mexico to more firmly secure its border with Guatemala and to take in migrants’ appeals for asylum.
In a news conference on Saturday, 1 June, López Obrador said he may be willing to compromise on some immigration issues in order to stave off U.S. tariffs.
“The main thing is to inform about what we’re already doing on the migration issue, and if it’s necessary to reinforce these measures without violating human rights, we could be prepared to reach that deal,” Lopez Obrador said, according to CNBC.
Neil Bradley, chief policy officer for the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, said if negotiations failed and tariffs went into effect, it would hurt all sectors of the U.S. economy.
"This is going to be felt by every sector and it's going to be felt by consumers. Not just by businesses. Not just the auto industry. It's going to be felt more widely and deeply than previous tariffs were felt," Bradley told ABC News.
