On 14 November 2025, Switzerland, Liechtenstein, and the United States announced a framework to negotiate an Agreement on Fair, Balanced, and Reciprocal Trade (see joint statement here and press release of Swiss government here, see fact sheet here). This development brings long-awaited relief to Swiss market participants after the steep 39% tariffs introduced on 1 August 2025 (Swiss national day) sent shock waves through the Swiss economy. Under the framework, the United States will reduce…
On November 14, 2025, President Donald J. Trump issued an Executive Order modifying the scope of reciprocal tariffs to exempt certain agricultural products. The tariffs were originally imposed in April to address persistent U.S. goods trade deficits, which were deemed a national emergency under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA), the National Emergencies Act, and the Trade Act of 1974. The action follows an earlier order issued in September that had modified the goods…
On November 13, 2025, the United States and South Korea issued a joint factsheet announcing the formalization of a series of trade-related negotiations. The announcement builds upon prior arrangements and reflects ongoing negotiations between the two countries’ leaders, including recent meetings and state visits. The announcement confirms the trade deal announced in July 2025, which set a 15% tariff rate for most South Korean imports, and also represents a comprehensive approach to the critical economic…
Following months of negotiations and feints, on November 1, 2025, the United States and China reached a trade and economic agreement during bilateral discussions held in the Republic of Korea. The agreement outlines a series of reciprocal measures intended to address trade flows and market access between the two countries. The negotiations had already yielded significant rapprochement between the two countries, including the one-year suspension, as of November 10, 2025, of the “Affiliates Rule,” which…
On October 26, 2025, the Trump Administration announced a series of trade agreements with Malaysia and Cambodia, as well as framework agreements with Thailand and Vietnam, marking expanded US economic engagement across Southeast Asia. Vietnam: According to a joint statement, Vietnam will open its market to most US exports on a duty-free basis, while the United States maintains a 20% tariff on Vietnamese goods, with some exceptions, to be listed in Annex III to Executive…
Following an investigation initiated in December 2024, the Office of the United States Trade Representative (USTR) issued a formal determination under Section 301 of the Trade Act of 1974. A report published by USTR pursuant to the investigation found that the Nicaraguan government’s systematic repression of dissent, misuse of laws to target civil society, and broader violations of labor and human rights burden US commerce. The determination recommends several measures in response to the findings,…
On September 29, 2025, President Donald J. Trump issued a proclamation imposing new tariffs on imports of timber, lumber, and wood products as a result of an ongoing investigation under Section 232 of the Trade Expansion Act of 1962 that was initiated on March 1, 2025. In accordance with this investigation, the President concluded that duties should be imposed on certain timber, lumber, and wood products to address national security concerns. To address these concerns,…
On September 25 and after years of litigation, the Federal Circuit upheld tariffs on Chinese goods imposed during President Donald Trump’s first term under Section 301 of the Trade Act of 1974 . The three-judge panel unanimously agreed that the administration had the authority to expand the initial tariffs from USD 50 billion to USD 320 billion worth of Chinese goods on products in 2019. Importers challenged the tariffs arguing they were unlawful. The court…
The US Department of Commerce announced that it had initiated separate investigations under section 232 of the Trade Expansion Act of 1962 into imports of a broad array of medical goods and imports of robotics and industrial machinery. These new investigations illustrate the administration’s growing reliance on Section 232 investigations to impose tariffs. Section 232 authorizes the President, through the US Department of Commerce, to examine national security impacts of specific imports. In addition to…
On September 25, President Donald Trump took to his social media platform Truth Social to announce a new wave of tariffs under Section 232 of the Trade Expansion Act, targeting furniture, pharmaceuticals and trucks. These measures, set to take effect on October 1, 2025, are framed as necessary for national security and are being implemented to revitalize domestic manufacturing, and seem to follow from the previously announced initiation of Section 232 investigations covering such products.…