Trump's Mexico tariffs will impact these US imports the most
President Trump on Thursday announced that he intends to impose 5 percent tariffs on goods from Mexico – one of the United States’ largest trading partners – in June, over the large number of illegal immigrants crossing into the U.S. at the southern border.
U.S. goods and services trade with Mexico totaled $671 billion last year – including $371.9 billion in imports and $299.1 billion in exports, according to government data. The U.S. trade deficit for the year was $72.7 billion.
Mexico was the third-largest goods trading partner for the U.S. in 2018 – and its second-largest export market.
Perhaps unsurprisingly, a number of business groups have come out in opposition to the tariffs, which they say will be paid for by American families when companies are forced to pass on increased costs.
The U.S. Chamber of Commerce is among several groups that are exploring potential legal action against the threatened tariffs, FOX Business learned on Friday.
Here’s a look at some of the top items the U.S. imported from Mexico in 2018:
Vehicles: $93 billion worth of imports
Car production facilities rely on trade with Mexico for parts in order to complete final assembly.
Electrical machinery: $64 billion worth of imports
Machinery: $63 billion worth of imports
The U.S. imports heavy equipment, like tractors, from Mexico.
Mineral fuels: $16 billion worth of imports
Optical and medical instruments: $15 billion worth of imports
Agricultural products: $26 billion worth of imports, including:
- Fresh vegetables: $5.9 billion. Mexico exports a large amount of tomatoes, eggplant and cucumbers to the U.S.
- Fresh fruit: $5.8 billion. The U.S. imports 80 percent of the avocados consumed in the U.S. from Mexico.
- Wine and beer: $3.6 billion. According to data from the Beer Institute, the U.S. imported 773 million gallons of beer from Mexico in 2018, an increase of 8.6 percent from the year prior and more than it receives from any other country. In the first 11 months of 2018, the U.S. imported 172.4 million liters of tequila from Mexico according to the country’s National Chamber of the Tequila Industry. Mexico also exports a large amount of wine.
Snack foods: $2.2 billion
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Processed fruits and vegetables: $1.7 billion
Service imports from Mexico – including travel, transport and technical – totaled $25.3 billion.