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1. Dumping duties complicate Mexico’s situation

Mexican exports face new trade barriers in European and Asian markets following the imposition of antidumping sanctions. The European Union set a definitive 24.1% tariff on terephthalic acid originating from Mexico—a strategic raw material for PET plastic manufacturing—after an investigation initiated at the request of local producers who alleged unfair competition practices. Simultaneously, China’s Ministry of Commerce issued a preliminary ruling imposing tariffs ranging from 17.8% to 51.6% on Mexican pecan exports due to alleged sales below market value. Facing this latter determination, the Secretariat of Economy expressed its concern, but confirmed that, together with the Secretariat of Agriculture, it will support domestic companies during the ten-day period granted to respond to the allegations and seek the withdrawal of the measures.

In parallel with these disputes, the United States government published a report titled “The Great Transshipment Scheme,” in which it classified Mexico as a “Tier 1” actor for allegedly serving as a platform for Chinese companies to introduce products into the U.S. market while evading Section 301 tariffs. According to the U.S. Office of Trade and Manufacturing Policy, goods valued at approximately 67 billion dollars were transshipped in 2025 from China through Mexico, India, and Vietnam via minimal processing or false relabeling to obtain USMCA preferences, causing fiscal losses of 28 billion dollars to the U.S. Treasury.

Infobae: Antidumping europeo golpea a México: arancel de hasta 24.1% al ácido tereftálico
 
El País: China impone aranceles del 51,6% a las nueces pecanas de México
 
Uno TV: EE. UU. señala a México como pieza clave del “gran fraude” de mercancías chinas

2. Supreme Court backs Pension Fund and FIU powers

The Full Bench of the Supreme Court of Justice of the Nation (SCJN) ruled on two milestone cases within the country’s economic landscape. On one hand, and unanimously, it declared the validity of the decree creating the Pension Fund for Welfare (Fondo de Pensiones para el Bienestar), promulgated in April 2024, which had been challenged through an unconstitutionality action by opposition legislators. The highest court determined that the reform does not infringe upon property rights or violate legal certainty by ordering that unclaimed funds in Afores by workers reaching age 70 at the IMSS or age 75 at the ISSSTE be automatically transferred to said fund. The ruling emphasized that this measure constitutes a change in the management of contributions to supplement pensions rather than an act of deprivation or confiscation, guaranteeing that savings remain the imprescriptible property of workers or their beneficiaries, backed by a technical committee, sufficiency reserves, and accountability frameworks.

The Supreme Court also reiterated the constitutionality of the Financial Intelligence Unit’s (FIU/UIF) powers to order the freezing of bank accounts without the need for a court order or a prior hearing, provided that the measure derives from domestic investigations with sufficient evidence of transactions involving illicitly sourced funds. The Full Bench specified that the freezing operates as an administrative precautionary measure intended to prevent the circulation of illicit funds in the financial system rather than as a criminal penalty. This determination aligned with the October 2025 reform to the Amparo Law, which mandates the denial of an injunction against the challenged act when granting it could facilitate the continuation of crimes or harm to the national financial system, while preserving the right of individuals to subsequently challenge the authority’s legal grounds.

El Economista: La SCJN reconoció la validez de Fondo de Pensiones para el Bienestar
 
Aristegui Noticias: SCJN avala que la UIF bloquee cuentas por investigaciones nacionales sin orden judicial

3. More investment announcements

The company GreenLight Biosciences announced an investment of between 50 and 100 million dollars to set up in Mexico City the world’s first plant dedicated to the production of RNA-based biofungicides. The project, authorized in a record time of nine months through the coordinated endorsement of several agencies, will generate 500 direct jobs and produce biological molecules that deactivate specific genes in fungi affecting crops such as avocado, strawberry, grape, corn, and cotton without leaving chemical residues or polluting aquifers. Initial developments include products targeted at combating mite or powdery mildew pests, replacing traditional pesticides with high-precision biotechnology. In this regard, President Claudia Sheinbaum met at the National Palace with John E. Waldron, President and Chief Operating Officer of Goldman Sachs, to address the investment opportunities offered by “Plan Mexico” and the favorable perception of the national economy in international markets.

In parallel, KIO Data Centers finalized the expansion of phases two and three of its QRO2 data center at the Mega Campus Querétaro, reaching a cumulative amount of 170 million dollars in said digital infrastructure. The company reported that it will allocate an additional 200 million dollars in 2026 to expand its capacity in Mexico City, Monterrey, and Querétaro in response to the growing demand for artificial intelligence processing and cloud services, evaluating a projection of up to 1.3 billion dollars by 2030 for the development of the QRO3 project. Furthermore, Secretary of Economy Marcelo Ebrard presented the company with the “Hecho en México” (Made in Mexico) seal, highlighting that the data economy and the artificial intelligence ecosystem will be key drivers of productive growth and the country’s competitiveness in North America.

Milenio: México aprueba primer biofungicida de ARN en el mundo; prevén inversión de 100 mdd en CdMx: Ebrard
 
El Sol de Querétaro: KIO anuncia inversión de mil 300 mdd para tercer centro de datos en Querétaro

4. Mexican aeronautics faces a new international evaluation

The United States Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) initiated an audit of Mexico’s Federal Civil Aviation Agency (AFAC) under the International Aviation Safety Assessment (IASA) Program. The process, conducted from August 10 to 14 within the framework of the bilateral air transport agreement, evaluates whether the Mexican regulator complies with the standards of the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) across eight key areas, including aeronautical legislation, training programs, license issuance, and operational oversight mechanisms.

Faced with this review, the Air Line Pilots Association (ASPA) and the College of Aviator Pilots of Mexico (CPAM) warned of the risk of a new downgrade to Category 2, similar to the one that occurred between May 2021 and September 2023, which froze the growth of domestic airlines and limited fleet expansion on cross-border routes. The president of the CPAM, Paul Castelazo Rodríguez, emphasized that the main vulnerability of the system lies in the restriction of public resources allocated to AFAC, whose budget for 2026 is around 657 million pesos, while sector studies estimate a baseline of 1.2 billion pesos is necessary to guarantee the hiring and efficient operation of inspectors. Specialists called on President Claudia Sheinbaum to consider this shortfall in the discussion of the Economic Package, warning that an eventual downgrade would affect profitability, expansion plans, and strategic alliances of Mexican commercial aviation against U.S. carriers.

Imagen Radio: La FAA de Estados Unidos inicia auditoria a la AFAC de México
 
El Universal: Colegio de pilotos alerta por degradación aérea

5. Debt market and customs surge in Mexico

Between January and July 2026, Mexico’s government debt market recorded a net inflow of $1.5096 billion, according to data from the Institute of International Finance (IIF), demonstrating a more favorable performance than the outflow of $3.2288 billion observed in the same period of 2025. Overall, the IIF highlighted that total flows to emerging markets returned to positive territory at $18.8 billion when including equity, but warned of risks associated with the U.S. Federal Reserve’s restrictive monetary policy and geopolitical tensions.

For its part, the National Customs Agency of Mexico (ANAM) reported that in July it reached an all-time high in monthly revenue collection of 131.616 billion pesos, representing an 8.7% increase compared to June and accumulating 791 billion pesos in the first seven months of the year. This performance was achieved even though only 21.1% of the 1.96 million operations during the month corresponded to taxed imports, driven mainly by VAT collection (66.8% of the total) and the dynamism of maritime customs—led by Manzanillo with 15.1% of national revenue collection—followed by border customs led by Nuevo Laredo.

La Jornada: México captó capitales por mil 509 mdd entre enero y julio de 2026
 
El Financiero: Reportan récord de recaudación en las aduanas, con 131 mil 616 millones de pesos