United States seeking Mexican steel export quotas -negotiator
By Frank Jack Daniel
MEXICO CITY, Oct 15 (Reuters) - The United States is seekingto impose quotas on Mexican steel exports as part of anegotiation to remove metals tariffs, the chief trade negotiatorof Mexico's incoming government said on Monday, adding the issueneeded to be resolved within weeks.
The administration of U.S. President Donald Trump imposedthe tariffs on Canada and Mexico in June, citing nationalsecurity reasons. Although the three countries agreed a renewedtrade deal earlier this month, the measures remain in place.
Jesus Seade, who represented Mexico's President-elect AndresManuel Lopez Obrador in the wider trade talks, said the currentMexican government was leading the metals talks but that he hadspoken to U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer on thematter.
"I have had a couple of calls with Lighthizer, and it isalong those lines, to manage volumes etc with Mexico and withCanada," Seade said in an interview with Reuters, declining togive more details about the content of the discussions.
Seade said the issue of tariffs on Mexican steel had to beresolved before the new government takes office on Dec. 1.
"There is a month-and-a-half left, so it needs to beresolved now," he said.
Mexico's economy ministry, which leads trade talks, did notimmediately respond to a request for comment.
Mexico is a net importer of steel from the United States,although it did export $2.5 billion of iron and steel to itsnorthern neighbor in 2017, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.
In March, the United States signed a deal with Seoul wherein exchange for an end to steel tariffs, South Korea agreed tocut exports by 30 percent of the past three years' average. During talks on the new United States-Mexico-CanadaAgreement (USMCA), U.S. officials told Canada they wanted asimilar arrangement for steel and aluminum, one source toldReuters last week, declining to give specific details. Canada rejected the demand and made clear any cap on themetals would have be at a level higher than current exports toallow room for shipments to grow.
(Reporting by Frank Jack DanielEditing by Joseph Radford)
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