Nearshoring manufacturing to Mexico to lower manufacturing costs and reduce lengthy freight times was common under the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) . That agreement was replaced by the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) in 2020.
The math on it is a little different now though in 2025 with the current tariff environment. USMCA overrides the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) tariffs, or reciprocal tariffs, but there are still hefty tariffs on imported steel.
