Sheinbaum Heads to China for Xi Talks as Trump Threatens Tariffs

President Claudia Sheinbaum is in Shenzhen, China, this weekend for the leaders’ summit of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation forum (APEC), where she has a one-on-one meeting scheduled with Chinese President Xi Jinping. The trip comes as Washington and Beijing are locked in a trade dispute and as US President Donald Trump renews threats to punish Mexico with tariffs, El País México reported.

Trump is also invited to the summit, but he is not on Sheinbaum’s list of bilateral meetings there. According to El País, she is keeping a possible meeting with him for Mar-a-Lago during the G20.

A rare trip abroad for Sheinbaum

Since taking office, Sheinbaum has traveled outside Mexico sparingly and turned down international invitations, putting domestic policy first. This is her ninth foreign trip as president. In Shenzhen she is also scheduled to meet Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney and representatives of other Asian economies, attend business meetings and take part in the APEC leaders’ session.

The heads of the ministries of Economy, Foreign Affairs, Environment and Science are traveling with her. The government says it wants to look for opportunities in health research, technology, investment and tourism. There is also an institutional reason for the visit: Mexico hosts APEC in 2028 and is in China to take over the organization’s presidency for that cycle.

Washington’s warning before the trip

On Friday, US Ambassador to Mexico Ronald Johnson posted on social media that the United States buys 83% of Mexico’s exports. He contrasted that with low-cost Chinese imports that, in his words, are flooding the Mexican market. El País described the message as an implicit warning published two days before Sheinbaum left.

China’s embassy in Mexico, headed by Chen Daojiang, had earlier accused US officials of disparaging Chinese companies and of trying to create friction between Mexico and China. Responding to Johnson’s remarks, the embassy rejected claims that China would want a chaotic and insecure Mexico and criticized the White House for trying to set conditions on Mexico’s trade relations.

Trump added pressure on Thursday. He said he would double tariffs on Mexico if migrant caravans heading to the United States are not stopped. Sheinbaum answered that no caravan has reached the northern border during her administration and defended her government’s handling of migration. The threat came about 10 days after Trump’s party lost an election that returns control of both chambers of Congress to the Democrats.

What Sheinbaum says about the meeting with Xi

Sheinbaum has rejected the idea that meeting Xi puts the relationship with the United States at risk. She noted that APEC brings together economies from different regions and that Mexico keeps friendly ties with every country. She also pointed out that Mexico has a free trade agreement with Washington and none with Beijing.

Before the trip she downplayed complaints from the National Chamber of the Textile Industry, which says Chinese clothing and fabric enter Mexico through Vietnam or the United States to avoid Mexican tariffs. She said the volume of those goods is very small and announced a plan to fight smuggling and support domestic production. Trade will come up with Xi, she said, “but it is not going to be the central topic.”

What’s at stake for Mexico

China is Mexico’s second-largest trading partner worldwide and a major supplier of goods and technology. At the same time, the Sheinbaum government has put tariffs on products from countries that have no trade agreement with Mexico, a decision that has angered Beijing. Those tariffs are meant to protect Mexican industry and avoid new friction with the United States, the destination of most Mexican exports.

The review of the North American free trade agreement is also under way, which adds to the uncertainty. El País called the trip a test of how much room Mexico has between its two main trading partners, at a time when much of the country’s economic stability depends on the relationship with the United States.

When Sheinbaum returns

The president is due back in Mexico on Nov. 20, in time for the ceremonies marking the anniversary of the Mexican Revolution.

Source: El País México