US, Mexico Eye Import Quota in Trade Talks on Steel Deal

Trade negotiations between the US and Mexico are homing in on a possible quota system to reduce tariffs on a certain volume of steel imports, a move seen as assuaging concerns of American manufacturers of the metal.

The developing framework, described by people familiar with the talks, would alleviate crushing duties for some of the Mexican steel imports that US automakers and other industries have described as essential.

But the exemption — known in trade parlance as a tariff-rate quota — would be limited to a certain volume of imports, probably tracking the average amount shipped to the US during ...