Mexico Denies Migrant Caravan Transit Amid Trump Tariff Threats

President Claudia Sheinbaum stated on Friday that a migrant caravan is forming in southern Mexico but is not yet in transit toward the United States border. The group is currently gathered in Huixtla, Chiapas, following the U.S. midterm elections in which the Democratic Party won control of Congress.

Estimates of the group's size vary. Mexico's National Migration Institute reports 870 people, while local sources and a non-governmental organization suggest the number is between 1,500 and 2,000. Sheinbaum maintained that "there is no caravan currently in transit through our country on its way to the border."

The gathering occurs as U.S. President Donald Trump threatened to double tariffs on Mexico if the government fails to prevent migrant groups from reaching the border. Despite these threats, Mexico's Economy Minister Marcelo Ebrard reported that the migrant group has not impacted ongoing trade negotiations.