Will Steel and Aluminum Tariffs be Lifted before the end of November?

Mexico will not sign the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) until the United States removes steel and aluminum tariffs on both Canada and Mexico.  The final text is currently being written and the goal is to have all three countries sign by the end of November, before Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrado (AMLO) takes office on December 1, 2018.

According to The Canadian Press, “Mexico won’t ink the agreement unless the U.S. removes its 25 per cent tariff on steel and 10 per cent levy on aluminum.”  The article goes on to state that Mexico won’t agree on a quota system as a way for the U.S. to remove duties just as Canada has argued.

 

In fact, although Mexico and Canada are pushing that steel and aluminum tariffs be lifted, it is worth to point out what buyers and sellers can do to get around the new taxes based on our border partners.  In an article in ipolitics.ca, United States Ambassador to Canada, Kelly Craft mentioned “The tariffs are not something that is against Canada; it is just protecting North America from other countries that will be passing raw materials through, and also (to) protect our steel industry at home.”

In response to the current steel and aluminum tariffs, both Canada and Mexico have placed their own retaliatory levies on U.S. imports.

Sources:

ipolitics

Canadian Press