Trump's 'Liberation Day 2.0' Global Tariffs Exempt Mexico's USMCA-Compliant Exports

On the one-year anniversary of his initial 'Liberation Day' tariff announcement, President Trump imposed a new sweeping 10% universal baseline tariff on imports from all countries. Mexico and Canada received an explicit exemption for goods compliant with the USMCA free trade agreement, which covers approximately 85% of Mexico's $580 billion in annual exports to the U.S. Sheinbaum, who suspended her morning press conferences for the Jueves Santo and Viernes Santo national holidays (April 2–3), did not hold a public event on April 2. Her government later characterized the exemption as confirming the value of Mexico's sovereign trade architecture. Non-USMCA-compliant imports from Mexico — roughly 15% of total trade — remain subject to a 10% Section 122 tariff that replaced the IEEPA instrument voided by the U.S. Supreme Court in February 2026. The tariff announcement triggered market volatility globally but the peso remained relatively stable in a 17.80–17.90 range as USMCA protection provided a buffer versus other emerging-market currencies.