Mexico Surpasses Canada as Top US Trade Partner, China Falls by 16.7%

Mexico was the United States’ biggest trading partner in 2023, new data from the U.S. Commerce Department shows.

The Details: Mexico and the U.S. exchanged $798.8 billion in goods in 2023. America exchanged $774.3 billion in goods with its second-biggest trading partner, Canada, which was its top trading partner in 2021 and 2022. Trade with Mexico and Canada was up 2.5% and 2.4% respectively, in 2023, while trade with third-biggest partner China was down 16.7%. The U.S. and China exchanged $575 billion in 2023.

For Context: China was the biggest American partner between 2015 and 2018. Canada and Mexico then became top partners in 2019 as tensions between the U.S. and China escalated into a trade war. Mexico, Canada, and China accounted for 42.1% of the $5.1 trillion trade total, and Germany overtook Japan for the fourth-biggest American partner.

How The Media Covered It: Business Insider (Lean Left bias) included context on the declining status of Chinese imports, attributing it to the Trump administration’s tariffs implemented in 2018. It also included context on Mexico’s surging economy and highlighted the 2020 NAFTA replacement, the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement. Forbes (Center bias) included context on how U.S. trade partners have fluctuated, which American ports have been the most active, and which goods have been traded the most. ZeroHedge (Lean Right bias) gave context on the ongoing trade war between the U.S. and China but did not mention President Trump’s 2018 tariff.