US-Mexico Tariff Deal Talks Stall Over Objections From Commerce Secretary Lutnick

Negotiations toward a US-Mexico tariff agreement have stalled due to pushback from US Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, according to a Wall Street Journal report. The two countries had been nearing an agreement to reduce US import tariffs on Mexican automobiles, steel, and aluminum in exchange for Mexican trade and policy concessions. However, Lutnick opposed major cuts to the existing 25% tariff on Mexican automobiles and 50% levies on steel and aluminum. Although Mexico's deputy trade minister Luis Rosendo Gutierrez maintained that negotiations are still advancing, the impasse creates renewed uncertainty for cross-border trade, regional supply chains, and the Mexican peso.