Donald Trump said this Monday that he will impose a 25% tariff on all products from Mexico and Canada, and an additional 10% barrier on Chinese products on January 20, when he again assumes the presidency in the United States.
“On January 20, as one of my first executive orders, I will sign all the necessary documents to charge Mexico and Canada a 25% tariff on ALL products entering the United States and its ridiculous open borders,” he wrote on his network social Truth Social.
“This tariff will remain in place until drugs, particularly fentanyl, and all illegal immigrants stop this invasion of our country!”
He maintained that both Mexico and Canada have the right and “absolute power” to easily resolve this problem that has been latent for a long time.
“We demand that you use this power, and until you do, it is time for you to pay a very high price!” he warned.
“As everyone knows, thousands of people are crossing Mexico and Canada, bringing crime and drugs to levels never seen before. “Right now, a caravan coming from Mexico, made up of thousands of people, seems unstoppable in its quest to cross our currently open border,” he said.
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He added that the tariffs on China are also linked to his concerns about fentanyl, and accused the country of failing to implement harsh sanctions, including the death penalty, on drug importers.
“I have had many conversations with China about the enormous quantities of drugs, particularly fentanyl, being sent to the United States, but to no avail,” he said.
“Chinese representatives told me that they would institute their maximum penalty, death, for any drug trafficker caught doing this, but, unfortunately, they never did and the drugs are coming into our country, mainly through Mexico, through levels never seen before,” he indicated.
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“Until they stop doing so, we will charge China an additional 10% tariff, on top of any additional tariffs, on all of their numerous products entering the United States of America. Thank you for your attention to this matter,” he stated.
After Trump’s announcement, the peso falls 1.51% and the exchange rate stands at 20.61 units per dollar in electronic operations, according to Bloomberg data at 6:23 p.m.
“One of the worst responses that Mexico could give to Trump would be to also impose tariffs. That would only cause more inflation in Mexico and would not put pressure on Trump to remove his tariffs,” said the director of economic analysis of the financial group Base, Gabriela Siller.
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