China opens investigation into Mexico's tariffs on Asia-bound imports

BEIJING — China has opened an official investigation into whether Mexico's plan to impose tariffs on imports from Asia amounts to a trade and investment barrier, the Chinese Commerce Ministry said Thursday. Mexico plans to impose duties as high as 50% on more than 1,400 products from Asia to protect domestic factories, which are facing stiff tariffs on exports to the United States.

In its statement, the ministry said the measures could harm the interests of affected countries and urged collective opposition to unilateralism and protectionism amid what it described as U.S. tariff abuses. “China believes that, against the backdrop of the current U.S. abuse of tariffs, all countries should jointly oppose all forms of unilateralism and protectionism and must not sacrifice the interests of third parties because of coercion,” the statement said. The ministry added that it would monitor the impact of the Mexican measures on regional and global trade.

Separately, the ministry announced an anti-dumping investigation into pecans imported from Mexico and the United States. Mexico has been under pressure from the Trump administration to curb Chinese imports, with some of those goods viewed as entering the U.S. market via Mexican supply chains. Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum has said the tariffs are not the result of U.S. pressure.

China would be among the most affected by Mexico’s plan, as Mexico imported about $130 billion worth of Chinese goods in 2024, second only to U.S. imports. Other countries likely to be affected include South Korea, Thailand, India, the Philippines and Indonesia. It is not clear whether the investigation would result in concrete steps against Mexico. Under the regulation governing such investigations, a finding that a trade barrier exists can lead to consultations with the other country, a settlement under a multilateral framework and other appropriate measures.