A July benchmarking survey from the U.S. Fashion Industry Association found that executives from 25 leading U.S. fashion companies have been diversifying their sourcing as part of a wider strategy to hedge against higher tariffs and U.S. trade policy uncertainties.
The US-China Business Council released its annual member survey, which shows almost all U.S. companies operating in China are concerned about the impact of tariffs on their business. Tariffs jumped from the eighth-highest concern in last year's survey to number two in this year's, with the highest being U.S.-China relations.
As companies seek to accommodate changes in U.S. tariffs, they should seek to understand the terms of their intercompany agreements and transfer pricing policies to avoid potential violations, according to an energy and infrastructure lawyer with Baker McKenzie.
Trade groups representing three strong exporting sectors -- soybeans, semiconductors and medical devices -- and an expert in critical minerals trade all told the Senate Finance Committee that higher tariffs on all countries and products, and constantly changing tariff policy, aren't good for American competitiveness.
Tariff rates above 200% essentially function “as an import ban” for some members of the American Apparel and Footwear Association because, at that price point, “companies don’t ship, they don’t import, they don’t make, they don’t buy,” the trade association’s head said on the Trade Guys podcast April 29.
Given the prohibitively high tariff levels placed on China, and the uncertainty surrounding reciprocal tariffs on other countries, USMCA-qualifying goods from Canada and Mexico are advantageous options for importers, according to compliance experts speaking at an Automotive Industry Action Group event on April 9.
Among more than 700 submissions to the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative -- as the administration seeks to quantify the cost to American exporters and producers of trade barriers and unfair subsidies -- were just over a dozen from trade groups representing foreign companies, American chambers of commerce specific to foreign markets, and foreign governments.
Sen. Bill Cassidy, R-La., joined by Sens. Raphael Warnock, D-Ga., Dick Durbin, D-Ill., and Rick Scott, R-Fla., introduced a renewal of a trade preferences program for Haiti this week.
Mexico should remain an attractive option for importers despite volatility from U.S. tariff threats, Mexico-based trade lawyer Alejandro Gomez argued during a Feb. 26 webinar hosted by In-House Connect, with lawyers from Foley & Lardner.
The EU chairman of the Committee for International Trade and a former U.S. trade representative predicted that the trade dispute between the U.S. and the EU is unlikely to subside soon due to "fundamental disagreements" over economic policy.