Tariffs have gone into effect on Mexican and Canadian goods to the United States, as well as goods from China.
Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum said on Tuesday that her government would respond with tariff and non-tariff measures to U.S. President Donald Trump’s 25 percent tariffs on imports from Mexico.
“There is no reason, rationale or justification to support this decision that will affect our people and nations,” Sheinbaum said at her regular morning press conference. “Nobody wins with this decision.”
Trump’s tariff actions went live at 12:01 a.m. ET after an initial 30-day pause.
Mexican officials met with their U.S. counterparts in Washington last week to discuss trade and security policy in a bid to stave off the imposition of tariffs, albeit unsuccessfully.
Sheinbaum said Mexico had collaborated with the United States on migration, security, and anti-drug trafficking.
“In these 30 days, decisive actions were taken against organized crime and fentanyl trafficking, as well as bilateral meetings on security and trade,” she said.
Sheinbaum said she would give details on Mexico’s response, including retaliatory tariffs, at an event in the capital on Sunday.
Canada’s Prime Minister has already answered the U.S. tariffs.
“Should American tariffs come into effect tonight, Canada will, effective 12:01 a.m. EST tomorrow, respond with 25 percent tariffs against $155 billion of American goods—starting with tariffs on $30 billion worth of goods immediately, and tariffs on the remaining $125 billion on American products in 21 days’ time,” Trudeau said in a statement.
The prime minister said the tariffs would remain in place until the U.S. trade action is withdrawn.
“While we urge the U.S. administration to reconsider their tariffs, Canada remains firm in standing up for our economy, our jobs, our workers, and for a fair deal.”
President Donald Trump said on March 3 the 25 percent tariffs against Mexico and Canada will go ahead as planned on Tuesday, adding that no last-minute negotiations would be able to prevent them from going into effect.
“The tariffs, they’re all set. They go into effect tomorrow,” Trump told reporters at the White House. “No room left for Mexico or for Canada.”
Trump first floated the idea of implementing tariffs on the two countries in November 2024 before he took office on Jan. 20, saying the nations have not done enough to stop the flow of illicit drugs and illegal immigrants from entering the United States.
Trump has also said he wants to fix trade imbalances and lure factories to relocate to the United States.
The 25 percent tariffs were originally set to go into effect on Feb. 4 but were paused for a month to allow Mexico and Canada more time to respond to the U.S. demands. Mexico sent 10,000 troops to its northern border but hasn’t taken sufficient action to curb the flow of fentanyl, the Trump administration has said.
Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, former president and chief executive of investment firm Cantor Fitzgerald, told CNN on Monday that the two countries still need to do more to stop the movement of fentanyl coming into the United States.
“He knows they’ve done a good job on the border. They haven’t done enough on fentanyl,” Lutnick said.
The president repeated this sentiment in a post on his social media platform Truth Social.
“Drugs are still pouring into our country from Mexico and Canada at very high and unacceptable levels,” Trump wrote on Feb. 27.
Canada and Mexico are not the only countries facing imminent tariffs. Additional tariffs on Chinese goods also went into effect at 12 a.m. ET Tuesday. In an amended executive order on March 3, Trump doubled the existing 10 percent tariffs on goods from China to 20 percent, citing the “sustained influx of synthetic opioids, including fentanyl.”
China has also responded with 10 to 15 percent increases on tariffs on various U.S. imports, like agricultural products. It also placed 25 U.S. firms under export and investment restriction.
Reuters contributed to this report.