U.S. senators from both parties have warned that China could use Mexico to avoid tariffs through international trade deals and have called on the government to impose tariffs on those imports to protect local industries.
In a letter to US President Joe Biden, Senators Marco Rubio (R-FL), Sherrod Brown (D-OH), Mike Braun (R-IN) and Bob Casey (D-PA) warned of China's strategy and called for tariffs to be imposed to protect the economy. The politicians argue that previous tariffs and the decline of the Chinese economy have caused various companies to relocate their manufacturing facilities from Asia to Mexico. However, China is capitalizing on the nearshoring trend and relocating its factories to Mexico.
“Notable examples of Chinese companies expanding into Mexico are automakers,” the politicians said. “Chery and MG have set up facilities in Mexico, while BYD and SAIC are scouting potential locations.”
In the letter, they point to a second concern: that Mexico is rapidly increasing steel exports to the United States in violation of international trade agreements.
“We have written repeatedly about this surge, expressing concern that steelworkers are losing their jobs and steel companies are being forced to postpone hundreds of millions of dollars in investments,” the senators said in the letter.
They called on Biden to deny Chinese products made in Mexico an exemption from tariffs under the USMCA (United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement) and to impose tariffs on Mexican steel imports.
“Stopping China's abuse of the USMCA and Mexico's increased steel production is about protecting American industry and building economic resilience,” the senators said in the letter. “It's also about implementing trade agreements. What's the point of making trade agreements if our leaders won't implement them? 'Tough' rhetoric will not help American industry unless it's accompanied by action.”
Ildefonso Ortiz is an award-winning journalist at Breitbart Texas. He co-founded Breitbart Texas' Cartel Chronicles project with Brandon Darby and senior Breitbart management. Twitter and FacebookContact details: email address.
Brandon Darby is Managing Director and Editor in Chief of Breitbart Texas. He co-founded Breitbart Texas' Cartel Chronicles project with Ildefonso Ortiz and other senior Breitbart executives. Twitter and FacebookContact details: email address.
