Mexico's Ministry of Economy responded on August 14 to the White House report *The Great Transshipment Scam*: according to data published by the ministry and reported by El CEO, China's share of Mexican imports fell from 20% to 17.3% in one year, and the largest importing companies are American.
The document, prepared by the White House Office of Trade and Manufacturing, places Mexico among more than 40 countries at risk of transshipment, a practice that, according to the same report, allows Chinese exporters to conceal the origin of goods through repackaging, relabeling, or limited assembly before shipping them to the United States. The Office of Commercial and Economic Analysis of the U.S. Department of Commerce estimates that approximately $67 billion in merchandise destined for the United States was transshipped from China through Mexico, India, and Vietnam in 2025, with annual losses of between $19 billion and $28 billion in federal revenue. The ministry's response matters for Mexico because the accusation comes alongside the review of USMCA rules of origin, and President Claudia Sheinbaum said on August 14, according to El Universal, that the government has demonstrated to the United States that no Chinese goods triangulation scheme exists.
Deputy Secretary for Foreign Trade Luis Rosendo Gutiérrez stated that the accusations are unfounded: Mexican imports from China accounted for 17.3% of the total between January and June 2026, compared with 20% during the same period in 2025, and the main companies importing Chinese products into Mexico are American, not Mexican. The accusation adds to a year of scrutiny: in June, the U.S. administration imposed a 10% tariff on certain imports from Mexico on the grounds that the country was allowing operations by Chinese companies linked to forced labor, and the Mexican government raised tariffs on Chinese steel to as high as 50%. The report itself acknowledges that the data alone do not prove that all displaced trade corresponds to illegal transshipment, since part of the growth reflects processes such as nearshoring.
The Ministry of Economy's response shifts the conversation from whether Mexico facilitates transshipment to who controls the import supply chains, at a moment when the United States and Mexico are discussing the strengthening of USMCA rules of origin. Sheinbaum said Mexico agrees on strengthening those rules and requested time for industry to adjust.
This article was drafted with the assistance of artificial intelligence from verified sources and reviewed by a human editor before publication.