Mexico expands its largest port as it bets on global trade despite Trump’s tariffs

A massive expansion of Mexico's largest seaport is under way as Mexican authorities bet on positive economic growth and the strength of global trade despite the gloomy outlook sparked by U.S. President Donald Trump's trade wars.

The Mexican government aims to transform the Port of Manzanillo on Mexico's Pacific Coast into the busiest seaport in Latin America, capable of processing some 10 million 20-foot (6.1-meter) containers, according to the Mexican Navy, which runs the facility.

It is already Mexico's largest port and the third largest in Latin America, handling nearly 4 million 20-foot containers in 2024.

The multibillion dollar port expansion is one of Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum's major infrastructure projects. The investment is part of Mexico's efforts to defy an economic downturn as Trump's trade wars have created widespread financial uncertainty.

Earlier this week, the International Monetary Fund slashed its growth forecasts for most countries. That included Mexico, which the IMF predicted will have a 0.3% contraction in economic growth for 2025 as U.S. tariffs bite into exports.

Sheinbaum disputed the IMF forecast, saying that public investment would prevent the economy from contracting and touted her government's "Plan Mexico," an effort to boost domestic industry. The success of this plan rests, in part, on the modernization of the country's ports, such as Manzanillo, according to a government document published earlier this month.

In Manzanillo, the U.S. tariffs have not slowed trade, according to Julieta Juarez Ochoa, the port's commercialization manager. She said the majority of imports arriving at Manzanillo come from Asia and are largely used in domestic manufacturing.

"We don't see any real impact (of the U.S. tariffs), and we don't foresee a significant impact," she said.

The expansion will boost Manzanillo's capacity to handle containerized cargo and hydrocarbon products, she said. It is slated to be finished by the end of Sheinbaum's term in 2030, she added.

(Reporting by Diego Delgado and Daniel Becerril in Manzanillo, Mexico; Writing by Laura Gottesdiener; Editing by Sandra Maler)