UPDATE 1-Mexico's Sheinbaum 'confident' in favorable trade deals, readies tech projects

(Updates throughout with details from speech, context) By Sarah Morland MEXICO CITY, Oct 5 (Reuters) – Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum said on Sunday she is confident her government will reach a favorable agreement with the United States and other nations regarding trade, and will in parallel present developments in a plan to boost local tech. "I am confident we will reach a good agreement with the United States and all nations of the world regarding our trade relations," she told a packed ceremony celebrating her first year in office in Mexico City's central Zocalo square. Sheinbaum said her government would in the coming weeks present advances in made-in-Mexico projects developing electrical vehicles, semiconductors, satellites and drones, as part of a plan aligned with the changing trade environment. The plan includes developing a local artificial intelligence laboratory, she said. Elected last year and benefiting from approval ratings surpassing 70%, the climate scientist and former Mexico City mayor has spent much of her term navigating a complex relationship with the United States, Mexico's top trade partner. Latin America's No. 2 economy has been largely spared the brunt of Trump administration tariffs thanks to a free trade agreement with the U.S. and Canada that is up for review next year . Meanwhile, Mexico has also announced its own set of tariffs on countries with which it does not hold trade agreements – notably China – which analysts have seen as a response to pressure from Washington as it wages a trade war with Beijing. As she presented her government's accomplishments during her first year in office, Sheinbaum reiterated her government's commitment to protecting the nation's sovereignty and made a tongue-in-cheek nod to U.S. President Trump deciding earlier this year to rename the shared gulf between their countries . "Raise your hands, let's put it to a vote: who agrees that the train that will run from Mexico City to Nuevo Laredo should be called the Gulf of Mexico Train," she asked to a round of applause, and declared the result a majority. (Reporting by Sarah Morland; Editing by Cynthia Osterman and Chizu Nomiyama )

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