In the US, the two beauty pageants are aired by the network NBC and the Spanish-language channel Univision. Univision immediately dumped the two programs and said it would "cut all future business ties" with Trump. NBC's parent company NBC Universal followed suit today. NBC also airs Trump's reality series' The Apprentice and The Celebrity Apprentice. The network confirmed Trump would not return to The Celebrity Apprentice. The format is licensed from Mark Burnett's United Artists Media Group and "that relationship will continue," NBC said.

"Due to the recent derogatory statements by Donald Trump regarding immigrants, [the studio] is ending its business relationship with Mr Trump," the statement from NBC Universal said. NBC had earlier issued a statement saying it did "not agree with [Trump's] positions on a number of issues, including his recent comments on immigration." The moves by the two networks come as part of a larger backlash against the 69-year-old billionaire over the remarks. The organisation in charge of selecting Mexico's Miss Universe candidate, Nuestra Belleza Latina, has also stated its objection to Trumps remarks and threatened to withdraw this year's candidate, Wendy Esparza. There is nothing to apologise for Donald Trump

And the Colombian singer J Balvin, who was scheduled to perform at the Miss USA pageant on July 12, has cancelled. "We're talking about our roots, our culture, our values," Balvin said. "This isn't about being punitive, but about showing leadership through social responsibility. [Trump's] comments weren't just about Mexicans, but about all Latins in general." The Miss USA pageant has also lost both of its hosts, with Puerto Rican actress Roselyn Sanchez and Chilean actor Cristian de la Fuente both quitting. "[Trump's] comments were an insult to our culture; I won't sponsor anything produced by Donald Trump," Sanchez said.

De la Fuente added it was "unacceptable to launch [a] presidential candidacy creating rhetoric of hatred and discrimination." "It's a shame that such an important institution as Miss USA is now in the hands of a clown," he said. Trump made the offending remarks at an event in New York to launch his bid for the Republican nomination for the US presidential race in 2016. He said: "[Mexico is] sending people that have lots of problems, and they are bringing those problems to us. They're bringing drugs, they're bringing crime, they're rapists." Seemingly unaware of the astonishing insensitivity of his remarks, he added: "And some, I assume, are good people."

Trump said at the launch that the United States needed better negotiators, and cited his authorship of a book titled The Art of the Deal as evidence of his talents. He also said he wanted to build a wall between the United States and Mexico. "I would build it," he said. "I'm very good at building things." In the wake of a backlash against his remarks, Trump defended his position earlier this week. "There is nothing to apologise for," he said. "Many bad people are pouring through; I'm not saying just Mexican, many bad people. "I don't have a racist bone in my body," he added.