Overview
- Both governments will deliver joint analyses and policy options within 60 days, evaluating coordinated tools such as minimum border prices, Section 232 trade actions, common standards, investment incentives and rapid-response mechanisms for supply disruptions.
- President Claudia Sheinbaum said more than 200 non‑producing mining concessions will be voluntarily returned to the state, affirmed that no legal changes are planned and stressed that each country will conduct exploration within its own territory.
- Mexico will strengthen its geological service to lead state‑driven exploration, including work on rare earths in collaboration with universities and research institutes.
- A recent U.S. executive order empowers the Commerce Secretary and USTR to negotiate measures addressing imports tied to critical minerals, framing the issue as a national security concern.
- IEA data show China and Indonesia hold a dominant share of global refining capacity for key materials, while China publicly criticized U.S.-led mineral partnerships as exclusionary; regional talks now extend to partners including Canada, Japan and the European Union.