Mexico’s Congress authorized up to 50 percent tariffs on Chinese imports on Wednesday, a move seen as an effort to align Mexico with the United States amid pressure from Washington.
墨西哥國會週三授權對中國進口商品加徵最高50%的關稅，此舉被視為在華盛頓壓力下，墨西哥與美國保持立場一致的重要舉措。
On Wednesday morning, Mexico’s lower chamber of Congress approved the tariffs, which apply to China and other countries with which it does not have a trade deal. Mexico’s Senate then passed the bill in an expedited vote on Wednesday night. Seventy-six senators voted in favor versus only five against, while 35 abstained.
週三上午，墨西哥眾議院通過了該關稅法案，適用對象包括中國及其他與墨西哥無貿易協定的國家。當晚，墨西哥參議院以快速投票方式通過該法案，最終以76票贊成、五票反對、35票棄權的結果獲得通過。
President Claudia Sheinbaum, who proposed the tariffs in September, is widely expected to approve the legislation, which would then take effect in January. The tariffs would affect a wide variety of goods, including automotive parts, textiles, furniture, plastics, steel and aluminum.
該關稅提案由總統克勞迪婭·辛鮑姆於9月提出，外界普遍預計她將簽署批准，法案將於明年1月正式生效。關稅覆蓋範圍廣泛，包括汽車零部件、紡織品、傢具、塑料、鋼鋁等多種商品。
President Trump has been pressuring other nations to distance themselves from China, and the new Mexican tariffs would represent one of the biggest moves to do so yet.
川普總統一直向其他國家施壓，要求它們與中國保持距離，而墨西哥此次加徵關稅是迄今為止最重大的響應舉措之一。
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China is the second largest exporter to Mexico after the United States, selling $130 billion in goods to Mexico last year. (The United States sold $334 billion to Mexico last year.)
中國是僅次於美國的墨西哥第二大進口來源國。去年中國對墨出口額達1300億美元。（美國對墨出口額為3340億美元）。
Ms. Sheinbaum has denied that the tariffs are to appease Washington. She has said they will help boost Mexico’s domestic manufacturing — a major priority of hers — and close its large trade deficit with China, which buys comparatively little from Mexico.
辛鮑姆否認加徵關稅是為了迎合華盛頓。她表示，此舉將有助於推動墨西哥本土製造業發展——這是她的核心施政重點之一——同時縮小墨方對華巨額貿易逆差，中國目前從墨西哥進口的商品相對較少。
The Chinese government has strongly denounced the levies. It had warned Mexico to “think twice” and criticized moves made “under coercion to constrain China,” an allusion to Mr. Trump’s pressure.
中國政府已強烈譴責該關稅措施，此前曾警告墨西哥「三思後行」，並批評這種「在他人脅迫下以各種名目對華設限」的行為，暗指川普政府的施壓。
China’s Ministry of Commerce said in a statement on Thursday that the tariff increases would “substantially harm” it and Mexico’s other trading partners. It urged Mexico to “correct its erroneous practices of unilateralism and protectionism as soon as possible.” The ministry said a trade barrier investigation it initiated in September regarding Mexico is currently underway.
中國商務部週四在聲明中表示，加徵關稅將「實質性損害」中國及墨西哥其他貿易夥伴的利益，敦促墨西哥「及早糾正這種單邊主義、保護主義的錯誤做法」。商務部還透露，已於9月啟動針對墨西哥的貿易壁壘調查，目前調查正在進行中。
The Trump administration has accused Mexico of being a backdoor for Chinese goods to enter the United States. To try to block that, the White House has put new tariffs on Mexican goods made with Chinese parts. As a result, some Mexican companies this year have shifted supply chains away from China, often with the help of the Mexican government.
川普政府指控墨西哥是中國商品進入美國的「後門」。為阻止這一情況，白宮已對含中國零部件的墨西哥商品加徵新關稅。受此影響，今年部分墨西哥企業已將供應鏈脫離中國，其中不少得到墨西哥政府協助。
美國總統唐納德·川普與墨西哥總統克勞迪婭·辛鮑姆及加拿大總理馬克·卡尼進行會談。美國與墨西哥互為最大貿易夥伴。
美國總統唐納德·川普與墨西哥總統克勞迪婭·辛鮑姆及加拿大總理馬克·卡尼進行會談。美國與墨西哥互為最大貿易夥伴。 Julia Demaree Nikhinson/Associated Press
In its newly published National Security Strategy, the Trump administration said it was focused on strengthening its grip on the Western Hemisphere, including by keeping powers like China out of the region. “We want other nations to see us as their partner of first choice, and we will (through various means) discourage their collaboration with others,” it said.
川普政府在新發布的《國家安全戰略》中明確表示，其重點是加強對西半球的掌控，包括阻止中國等國家進入該地區。文件稱：「我們希望其他國家將我們視為首選合作夥伴，並將（通過多種方式）阻止它們與其他方合作。」
Washington has enormous leverage over Mexico. The two countries are each other’s largest trading partners, with $840 billion in trade last year, or seven times Mexico’s trade with China. The Trump administration recently kicked off what could be a contentious process to rework the trade deal between the United States, Canada and Mexico — an agreement Mr. Trump signed into law during his first term but has threatened to scrap.
華盛頓對墨西哥擁有巨大影響力。美墨互為最大貿易夥伴，去年雙邊貿易額達8400億美元，是墨西哥對華貿易額的七倍。川普政府近期啟動可能引發爭議的程序，旨在重新談判美加墨貿易協定——該協定由川普在第一任期簽署生效，但他曾威脅要廢除這一協議。
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Mr. Trump has also repeatedly warned that he would like to use military force against drug cartels in Mexico, which Ms. Sheinbaum has said would be unacceptable. He has recently softened his stance as Mexico has increased cooperation on security, immigration and trade.
川普還多次警告稱，考慮對墨西哥販毒集團採取軍事行動，辛鮑姆此前表示這一做法不可接受。隨著墨西哥在安全、移民和貿易領域加強與美方合作，川普近期已軟化相關立場。
The new tariff rates would vary depending on the import. They also apply to other countries that Mexico does not have a trade agreement with, including South Korea, Thailand and India. But China is by far the largest exporter affected.
新關稅稅率將根據進口商品種類有所不同，同時適用於韓國、泰國、印度等其他與墨西哥無貿易協定的國家，但中國是目前受影響最大的出口國。
Alejandra Barrales, a Mexican senator whose party opposes Ms. Sheinbaum, raised concerns about the tariffs and their potential to increase prices for Mexicans, particularly in the automotive industry.
來自反對黨陣營的墨西哥參議員亞歷杭德拉·巴雷萊斯對關稅措施表示擔憂，認為這可能導致墨西哥國內物價上漲，尤其會衝擊汽車行業。
She said that Mexico was caught in the middle of a dispute between the world’s two largest economies: the United States and China.
她表示，墨西哥被夾在全球兩大經濟體美國和中國的爭端中間。
“With this tariff proposal, Mexico will be defining who it is going to play with and it will be taking sides in a dispute that doesn’t seem simple at all,” she said before the proposal was approved.
「這份關稅提案將決定墨西哥與誰為伍，使墨西哥在一場絕非簡單的爭端中選邊站隊，」她在提案通過前表示。