AMLO policies may hit Mexico-EU trade and investment

Significance

An agreement in principle in 2018, to modernise a 2000 trade deal to deepen trade and investment, is yet to be implemented. At the same time, controversial energy reforms pushed by the Mexican government, which pose commercial risks for EU investors and clash with the bloc’s climate priorities, have been condemned by European firms and officials.

Impacts

• Mexico’s nationalist turn in energy policy will dampen investment from EU firms in oil and gas, as well as renewables.
• The EU’s push to mobilise green finance for developing economies will prioritise other countries with more favourable policy frameworks.
• The shift towards dirty energy could make Mexico a target of the EU’s newly announced carbon tax on imports.