Office of the United States Trade Representative

Rule Changes

Investigating authority; issued the June 2 determination

Brazil sells the United States about $40 billion in goods a year. A new US trade action could add 25% to the price of most of it.

Updated Jun 2

Rule Changes

Leading 16 simultaneous Section 301 investigations

For thirteen months, the Trump administration imposed tariffs using emergency powers no president had claimed for that purpose. On February 20, the Supreme Court ruled 6-3 that those tariffs were illegal.

Updated May 30

Rule Changes

Lead US negotiating body

India has been the world's second-largest buyer of Russian oil since 2022, snapping up discounted crude while Western nations sanctioned Moscow. On February 2, 2026, Trump announced that Modi agreed to stop these purchases in exchange for US tariff cuts from 50% to 18%, ending a trade war that escalated for nearly a year.

Updated May 29

Rule Changes

Negotiated and signed agreement

Argentina has protected its domestic industries with tariffs and import controls since the 1940s. On February 6, 2026, Buenos Aires signed its first bilateral trade agreement with the United States—eliminating barriers on over 200 categories of American goods and securing tariff relief on 1,675 Argentine products in return.

Updated May 27

Rule Changes

Overseeing AGOA modernization

For a quarter century, the African Growth and Opportunity Act let 32 sub-Saharan African countries ship goods to America duty-free—supporting roughly 1.3 million jobs across the continent. When Congress let the program expire in September 2025, textile workers in Lesotho lost their livelihoods, Kenyan jeans manufacturers laid off a thousand workers, and African governments scrambled to negotiate. Four months later, President Trump signed a one-year extension through December 2026.

Updated May 27

Rule Changes

Leading tariff negotiations

For three decades, the U.S. and Canada traded under free trade agreements, with nearly $2.7 billion in goods crossing the world's busiest commercial border daily. President Trump ended that on February 1, 2025, imposing 25% tariffs on Canadian goods.

Updated May 26

Money Moves

Implementing tariff policy and exemptions

In April 2025, average US tariffs hit their highest level since 1943. Nine months later, the global economy is still growing. The IMF's January 2026 World Economic Outlook projects 3.3% global growth (slightly better than feared), thanks to supply-chain rerouting, surging AI investment, and a US-China truce pulling tariffs back from their 145% peak.

Updated May 22

Money Moves

Lead U.S. agency for trade negotiations

China posted a $1.2 trillion trade surplus for 2025, the largest any country has ever recorded. The number is roughly equal to Indonesia's GDP, the world's 16th-largest economy.

Updated May 21

Rule Changes

Administering tariff policy

The legal foundation for Trump's tariff strategy collapsed on February 20 when the Supreme Court ruled 6-3 that IEEPA does not authorize tariffs. The decision voided both the 25% Iran secondary levy and other emergency-based duties on China. Trump signed a 10% global replacement under Section 122 of the Trade Act within hours, dropping China's effective rate from 47% to about 35%.

Updated May 20