Slim • Economics and Finance • Forbes Mexico

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Carlos Slim Helú said that the tariffs proposed by President Donald Trump “do not work”, since they would end up causing “an explosion” of inflation, so he said that “they are a negotiation strategy.”

“The tariffs do not work, inflation rise, I believe that these tariffs do not solve the problems. I think it would be interesting to reduce spending on many things and, on the other hand, lead it to investment, ”said Slim at a long press conference in Mexico City.

He said that Mexico has a lot of space to absorb tariffs because there was a exchange rate of 16 pesos per dollar and went to 21, and “with the imposition of the rates it went to 22 pesos per dollar.”

“If the exchange rate had gone to 22 pesos per dollar no longer paints the tariff,” he argued.

Slim, whose statements were before Trump applied 25% tariffs to steel and aluminum, minimized the tariff threat by ensuring that they are part of a “negotiation” strategy, so he predicted that Trump will not end up imposing them despite his Threats

“I believe that a general tariff will not impose. If everything that is imported to states carries 25%, inflation will be an explosion. I believe that what the United States has to do is to grab world leadership again, ”predicted the honorary and life president of Grupo Carso and América Mobe.

Tariffs of 25% to all imports of EU of steel and aluminum will especially impact Mexico, a country that sends 80% of its production of both metals to its northern neighbor.

Lee: Trump imposes 25% tariffs on steel and aluminum, including those of Mexico and Canada

Tariff tensions have grown since Trump’s arrival at the White House on January 20, after threatening to impose tariffs on all Mexican products from the beginning of February.

However, negotiations at the last minute between Trump and President Claudia Sheinbaum allowed an agreement that Washington postponed commercial barriers for a month, while Mexico reinforces border surveillance to curb drug flow and irregular migration with the deployment of 10,000 more soldiers to the border between both countries.

Slim, 85 years old and the richest person in Mexico, acknowledged that the United States is not in “a good moment”, but recommended that what you have to do is “strengthen investment and reduce expenses.”

He declared that the cost of labor in China is $ 9, while in Mexico it is 4.5 dollars in the manufacturing industry: “It is no longer the Chinese of 2003, when the cost of labor was 0.60 cents of dollar ”.

He pointed out that another of the problems of the United States to solve is its dependence on Chinese products.

He said that in March 2021 then President Joe Biden declared the tariff war on China: “From there he began taking measures, which were already preparing and suddenly stopped supplying semiconductors. And the Americans ran out to get semiconductors. ”

He said that overnight launched a plan to take Taiwan semiconductor plants to Arizona, and injected a capital of 50 million dollars to boost the chip industry in the US market.

He declared that the United States imports many things from China, so there will be a cordial technological and economic competition between the two nations.

With information from EFE and Enrique Hernández

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