On April 11, 2025, President Donald Trump issued a Presidential Memorandum providing clarification of allowable exceptions under Executive Order 14257 of April 2, 2025 (i.e., implementation of reciprocal tariffs). The memorandum clarifies that one excepted product is the importation into the United States of “semiconductors.” The memo proceeds to define this term as including products
President Trump Pauses Country-Specific Reciprocal Tariffs for 90 Days but Increases Tariffs on China
On April 9, 2025, President Donald Trump issued an Executive Order (EO) announcing that he was pausing the country-specific reciprocal tariffs and, instead, leaving in place for 90 days the baseline 10% tariffs on all countries that was implemented on April 5, 2025. The President, however, noted that this pause would not apply to imports…
President Trump Increases Reciprocal Tariff and De Minimis Rates on China Due to Retaliation
On April 8, 2025, President Donald Trump issued a new Executive Order (EO) to address China’s retaliatory 34 percent tariff it is scheduled to impose on all goods imported into China originating from the United States beginning on April 10, 2025. The President has stated that effective with respect to goods entered for consumption, or…
Trump Signs EO Prohibiting Duty-Free De Minimis Treatment for Goods from China
On April 2, 2025, President Donald Trump signed an Executive Order (EO) that excludes goods from China (including products of Hong Kong) from entering the United States duty-free under the de minimis exception beginning May 2, 2025. Section 321 of the Tariff Act of 1930, commonly referred to as the “de minimis” rule…
Trump Announces Reciprocal Tariffs on Over 60 Countries
UPDATED: This blog post has been updated with additional information and links upon the release of the Annexes to the Executive Order. Readers should note that the breadth and depth of this Executive Order and the implementation of these tariffs is unprecedented, thus the situation regarding interpretation and their implementation remains fluid. It is expected…
BIS Adds Over 80 Companies to Entity List, with Heavy Focus on China
On March 25, 2025, the Department of Commerce’s Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) added over 80 companies to its Entity List through two Final Rules. These are the first listings by BIS under President Donald Trump’s second term and the listings heavily focus on China. According to BIS, these entities “have been determined by…
Trump Signs EO Imposing an Additional 25% Tariff on Countries That Buy Venezuelan Oil
On March 24, 2025, President Donald Trump signed an Executive Order (EO) declaring that any country purchasing oil from Venezuela, “whether directly from Venezuela or indirectly through third parties,” will pay a 25% tariff on their exports to the United States. The EO tasks the Secretary of Commerce with determining whether a country buys Venezuelan…
USTR Releases President Trump’s 2025 Trade Policy Agenda and 2024 Annual Report
On March 3, 2025, the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) delivered President Donald Trump’s 2025 Trade Policy Agenda, 2024 Annual Report, and World Trade Organization at Thirty report to Congress. This year’s trade agenda seeks to strengthen the middle class and national defense and to address trade deficits by focusing on a “Production…
USTR Proposes Actions Against China’s Unfair Trade Practices in Maritime, Logistics & Shipbuilding Sectors
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Tariffs Against China and Hong Kong Increase to 20% on March 4, 2025
On March 3, 2025, the White House issued an Executive Order to further address the synthetic opioid supply chain in China by increasing the current tariffs on all products of China (and Hong Kong) from 10% to 20%. China immediately responded by announcing that it will implement additional tariffs of up to 15% on key…