MEXICO CITY, Oct 28 (Reuters) – Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum said on Wednesday that trade talks with the US are ongoing and both sides are assessing whether it is feasible to reach an agreement before US midterm elections in early November.
The US and Mexico are pursuing a temporary bilateral deal while fraught negotiations with Canada continue over the possible renewal of the trilateral USMCA trade agreement.
“In areas where we can reach an agreement and strengthen both countries, we are making progress,” Sheinbaum said during her daily morning press conference.
Mexico is still seeking “a significant reduction” in tariffs on the local automotive, steel, and aluminum industries, she added.
Mexico’s push for a deal follows the collapse of US-Canada trade talks last month, which set off a bitter tariff dispute that includes new US import bans on Canadian alcohol, motorcycles and dairy.
Canada has vowed dollar-for-dollar retaliation, and the fallout has reinforced Mexico’s strategy of cooperating with Washington instead of confronting it, in hopes of getting tariff relief.
Though there’s no formal deadline, officials in both countries are hopeful of a deal before the November 3 elections, when Republicans risk losing Congress. It would give both leaders a win to point to amid domestic political challenges.
(Reporting by Raul Cortes, Editing by Anthony Esposito and Aida Pelaez-Fernandez)
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