President Trump on Thursday said he’s giving Mexico an additional 90 days to strike a trade deal, with the announcement coming a day before his administration’s Aug. 1 deadline to impose 30% tariffs on imports from the nation.
Mr. Trump had said earlier this month that the 30% import duties would begin on Friday for Mexican imports, saying at the time that the country had not done enough to stop North America from turning into a “Narco-Trafficking Playground.”
In his Thursday social media post, the president said he agreed to a 90-day extension during a phone conversation with Mexico President Claudia Sheinbaum, which he described as “very successsful.”
The president has turned to tariffs as a way to force trading partners to negotiate deals that he says are more favorable to the U.S. and reduce trade imbalances. Ahead of the Aug. 1 deadline to strike new trade deals with Mexico and many other nations, the Trump administration has announced trade deals with five Asian countries, the United Kingdom and the European Union.
“We will be talking to Mexico over the next 90 Days with the goal of signing a Trade Deal somewhere within the 90 Day period of time, or longer,” Mr. Trump wrote.
He added that the “exact same Deal as we had” with Mexico will be extended during that time, which includes a “25% Fentanyl Tariff, 25% Tariff on Cars, and 50% Tariff on Steel, Aluminum, and Copper.”
Many economists project that tariffs could lead to higher consumer prices because the import duties are paid by U.S. importers, such as Walmart, which then pass on some or all of the costs to shoppers. While inflation so far in 2025 has remained relatively muted, there are signs that the import duties are pushing some U.S. prices higher.
For instance, the Federal Reserve’s preferred inflation measure — the Personal Consumption Expenditures, or PCE — ticked higher in June. Many goods that are heavily imported saw clear price increases, with furniture prices up 1.3% just last month, appliances up 1.9%, and computers up 1.4%.
