The Far East is not so far away to complain
It seems that the trade relationship between Mexico and China is going through that awkward moment in which one of the two decides to raise their voice, like when you complain to your roommate for leaving the dishes dirty. The tension, dear reader, is hotter than a smartphone after a three-hour video call. The Asian country, in a display of patience that rivals that of a saint, has decided that enough of the hints is enough and has raised the volume of its complaints in the face of Mexico’s charming new protectionist measures. The jewel in the crown? A fantastic initiative to impose a tariff of up to 50% on a varied selection of Asian products, a proposal that currently rests, awaiting its fate, in the sacred precincts of the Mexican Congress. And, as in any good modern drama, the neighbor to the north, the United States, is the spectator who animates the show from his seat, with his own trade war against the Asian giant and with the renegotiation of the USMCA on the horizon of 2026. Because what would a bilateral dispute be without a third party to weigh in?
The Chinese Government’s messages have evolved from being those subtle winks that no one understands to becoming formal statements with the seal and signature of the Chinese Ministry of Commerce. This Friday, for example, the authorities of the Asian country, with the precision of a surgeon, indicated that the Mexican Ministry of Economy has initiated four new and intriguing investigations for dumping practices related to Chinese companies that import items of absolute necessity: adhesive tape, steel bolts and PVC plastic pipes. Because nothing says “economic threat” like a roll of tape for sale at a suspiciously low price. “China firmly opposes protectionist actions that harm the legitimate rights and interests of Chinese companies,” the Chinese government declared in a statement that was undoubtedly written with a smile of circumstance. An understandable stance, coming from a nation famous for its disinterest in protectionism… wait, wasn’t it the other way around?
The geopolitical laundry account
The Chinese official protest has not remained an anecdote. He alleges, with the forcefulness of someone keeping score, that during 2025, the Mexican Government has opened the not inconsiderable number of at least 11 antidumping investigations against companies or products with a Chinese seal, all at the request of its charming local competitors. The Chinese Ministry of Commerce assures, with a voice breaking with emotion (or indignation), that this represents almost double those that began in 2024. And, oh, coincidence!, all this happens at the same time that the United States has increased the use of tariffs in such an enthusiastic way that it almost seems like a national sport. Mexico, in a plot twist that no one expected, surpassed China as the United States’ main trading partner in 2023. So, with the arrival of Donald Trump to the presidency, the number one priority of the Mexican Government has been, of course, to keep that idyllic bilateral relationship safe, at all costs. Who said that foreign policy was not a matter of feelings?
Diplomacy, that subtle art, has also taken a seat at the debate table. The Chinese embassy in Mexico, abandoning all subtlety, has accused the US government of “practicing economic bullying” to force its partners, like good Mexico, to take a healthy distance from trade with China. “The United States is not really concerned about the development of Mexico, but rather about forcing this country to serve as its geopolitical instrument,” the diplomatic mission stated this week. Come on, they see us as a pawn on their global chess board. Meanwhile, the new Chinese ambassador to Mexico, Chen Daojiang, has chosen the friendly route, publishing a text in the local press where he asks that Mexico and Latin America continue promoting free trade with Asia. A “let’s be friends” message that contrasts beautifully with accusations of bullying. Coherence is what is left over.
Despite this increasingly vocal (and legitimate, according to them) pressure, the Secretary of Economy, Marcelo Ebrard, has insisted that he is holding conversations with Asian governments that would be affected by the possible imposition of new tariffs on almost 1,500 tariff items. Ebrard, with a calm that could easily be sold in bottles, has ruled out the possibility of retaliatory measures, arguing the small detail of the trade deficit that Mexico maintains with the Asian giant. Come on, China sells us much more than we sell to them. And, in a display of exemplary restraint, China has only opened a pair of reciprocity investigations: one for trade and investment restrictions, and another for pecan antidumping. In the end, the final decision on whether or not to impose these controversial tariffs will rest with the Mexican Congress. A most relaxing situation for our deputies.
But not everything is bad news in this commercial idyll. In addition to the purchase-sale relationship, in which China is Mexico’s second supplier, Chinese investment in Mexican territory has been on a rise as steep as a roller coaster. In 2024, investment from that country represented the modest sum of 710 million dollars, funds that have been placed mainly in the states of Guanajuato, Coahuila and the always seductive Mexico City. So economic ties between China and Mexico hang in the balance, as the United States continues to raise the ante on protectionism with the determination of a player at a poker table. “China believes that, in the current context of tariff abuse by the United States, all countries should jointly oppose unilateralism, prevent the spread of protectionism, and avoid imposing restrictions on China under various pretexts due to external pressures,” Beijing said in its latest impassioned statement. A clear message: “Don’t let the big guy boss you around.”
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