Trump suspends tariff after Mexico takes "unprecedented steps"


FE Team | Published: June 08, 2019 17:41:41 | Updated: July 10, 2019 15:35:22


Trump suspends tariff after Mexico takes "unprecedented steps"

Mexico has agreed to take "unprecedented steps" to help stem the flow of migrants to the US in order to avoid trade tariffs threatened by President Donald Trump.

Mr Trump revealed that a deal had been reached to suspend the tariffs "indefinitely" in a series of tweets, reports BBC.

He had threatened to implement import duties of 5.0 per cent, rising every month, unless Mexico acted to curb migration.

The tariffs were due to come into effect on Monday.

The deal, also confirmed in a tweet by Mexico's Foreign Secretary Marcelo Ebrard, comes at the end of three days of negotiations, which saw Washington demand a crackdown on Central American migrants.

Mr Trump caught members of his own party unaware when he announced the proposed tariffs last week.

He had declared an emergency on the US-Mexico border in February, saying it was necessary in order to tackle what he claimed was a crisis with thousands of undocumented migrants crossing the frontier.

Share if you like