President Donald Trump announced he was delaying new tariffs on Mexico on Thursday, one day before his self-imposed August 1 deadline to reach trade deals with numerous countries.
The president announced his decision to delay tariffs set to go into effect on Friday for 90 days in a post on Truth Social after speaking on the phone with Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum.
“The complexities of a Deal with Mexico are somewhat different than other Nations because of both the problems, and assets, of the Border,” Trump wrote.
The president had been threatening 30 percent tariffs, but Trump instead said that Mexico will continue to pay a 25 percent “Fentanyl Tariff,” the 25 percent tariff on cars and the 50 percent tariff on steel, aluminum and copper.
“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,” the president wrote, signaling even the 90 day extension was in flux.
The extension comes one day after Trump declared that August 1 was the deadline and would “stand strong” and “not be extended.”
Trump Always Chickens Out (TACO) is an acronym started by Wall Street traders in May to describe the president’s tendency to make tariff threats, only to later delay them as a way to extend time for negotiations.
Sheinbaum confirmed that Mexico would not face increased tariffs starting on Friday and would be working with the U.S. during those 90 days to “build a long-term agreement through dialogue.”
Since the president’s so-called “Liberation Day” in April, when he first announced what he dubbed “reciprocal tariffs,” Trump has extended the deadline for sweeping tariffs by 90 days while attempting to reach deals, before extending the deadline again to August 1.
Over the past few months, Trump has announced a series of agreements, including some topline numbers and supposed investments in the United States, but questions remain over many of the details.
Most recently, on Thursday, the president announced he secured a deal with South Korea that would impose 15 percent tariffs on imports to the U.S. while locking in other concessions, but like most of the agreements he has announced, the deal remains lacking in detail.
The Trump administration had also announced previous frameworks for trade deals with the UK, Vietnam, the Philippines, Indonesia and Japan, as well as a temporary deal with China.
During his visit to Scotland, the president said he reached a deal with the European Union. Trump also indicated this week that he made a deal with Pakistan, but it was unclear if it would impact tariff rates.
The president’s delay of increased tariffs on Mexico suggests other countries may be able to continue negotiating past the August 1 deadline.
While Trump indicated he was closing in on a deal with Mexico, the president posted on Wednesday that it would be “very hard” for the U.S. to make a deal with Canada after the country backed Palestinian statehood.
