“This tariff will remain in effect until such time as drugs, in particular Fentanyl, and all illegal aliens stop this invasion of our country!” Trump wrote on his Truth Social page.
The Republican, who won an election in which illegal migration was a top issue, has vowed to declare a national emergency on border security and use the US military to carry out a mass deportation of undocumented migrants.
Mexican Economy Minister Marcelo Ebrard said on Wednesday some “400,000 jobs will be lost” in the United States if Trump followed through on his threat.
He cited a study based on figures from US carmakers that manufacture in Mexico.
‘A shot in the foot’
Ebrard said the tariffs would also hit US consumers hard, citing the US market for pickup trucks - most of which are manufactured in Mexico. The tariffs, the minister said, would add US$3000 ($5087) to the cost of a new vehicle.
“The impact of this measure will chiefly be felt by consumers in the United States ... That is why we say it would be a shot in the foot,” Ebrard told reporters, speaking alongside Sheinbaum at her regular morning conference.
Mexico and China have been particularly vociferous in opposition to Trump’s threats of a trade war from day one of his second presidential term, which begins on January 20.
Sheinbaum has declared the threats “unacceptable” and pointed out that Mexico’s drug cartels exist mainly to serve drug use in the United States.
China has warned that “no one will win a trade war”.
During his first term as President, Trump launched full-blown trade hostilities with Beijing, imposing significant tariffs on hundreds of billions of dollars of Chinese goods.
China responded with retaliatory tariffs on American products, especially affecting US farmers.
The United States, Mexico and Canada are tied to a three-decade-old, largely duty-free trade agreement.
Called the USMCA, it was renegotiated under Trump after he complained that US businesses, especially automakers, were losing out.
© Agence France-Presse
