Industry Data Shows Mexico Deliberately Pricing 25% less than U.S. Products
WASHINGTON — The Coalition for a Prosperous America (CPA) today released a statement calling on the Biden administration to address Mexico’s blatant and continuing breach of a 2019 joint agreement to lift steel tariffs in return for Mexico avoiding a surge of steel imports, including deliberately pricing underneath U.S. steel products and suppressing data regarding Mexican steel imports.
Industry data from U.S. domestic steel manufacturers also shows that Mexican steel producers are deliberately pricing more than 25% less than American-made products. For example, wire rod from Mexico was priced at 32 cents per pound Free on Board (FOB) mill in May 2023 compared to 55 cents per pound FOB mill for U.S. wire rod. At the same time, the Mexican government is suppressing data on imports of steel products to Mexico, raising the possibility of circumvention of steel products shipped to the U.S.
“Not only is Mexico blatantly violating the 2019 joint agreement, Mexican steel producers are undercutting American steel producers by keeping their prices at least 25% less, on certain steel products,” said Michael Stumo, CEO of CPA. “Equally concerning, Mexico is exporting steel products to the U.S. at levels surging well beyond historical baselines. It is time for the Biden administration to recognize this for what it is: a blatant assault on America’s steel industry and workers. It is clear that Mexico does not intend to adhere to the 2019 agreement. As such, the Biden administration should immediately reapply Section 232 tariffs and consider other mechanisms to ensure compliance and protect American jobs.”
Despite the joint agreement, duty-free steel imports from Mexico have risen 141% over historic levels, with some subcategories of imports tripling and quadrupling. This includes a 577% increase in steel conduit imports for 2022, compared to the baseline period of 2015 to 2017. In February, CPA applauded a bipartisan letter to Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo and U.S. Trade Representative Katherine Tai urging them to take action against Mexico’s blatant and continuing breach of a 2019 agreement to lift steel tariffs in return for Mexico avoiding a surge of steel imports.
Last November, CPA called on the Biden administration to resume the 25 percent tariff for steel conduit from Mexico in response to the surge of steel conduit imports. CPA now also calls for the reimposition of the 25% tariff for Wire Rod and other steel long products. This surge is a violation of Mexico’s commitments in the May 2019 Joint Statement by the United States and Mexico on Section 232 Duties on Steel and Aluminum.
As CPA CEO Michael Stumo wrote in Industry Week, “The Biden administration must stand up for America’s steelmakers. And it shouldn’t let other countries openly flout the terms of agreements they’ve negotiated with Washington. Unless Mexico immediately adheres to its 2019 steel obligations, President Biden should reimpose Section 232 tariffs on Mexican steel.”
