President Donald Trump’s threat of tariffs on Canada, China, and Mexico—even if some of those tariffs are now temporarily delayed—has the potential to upend the norms of international trade. CFR experts provide timely analysis on the trade-offs and costs involved as they explore the ripple effects on U.S. relations with allies and competitors alike and broader impact on the global economic system.

What Trump’s Trade War Could Mean, in Nine Charts

CFR Senior Vice President Shannon O’Neil and Julia Huesa explain how tariffs could upend U.S. trade. These nine charts show what’s at stake, what comes next, and why it matters. Read the article

Trump’s Risky New Era of Broken Trade Norms

CFR Senior Fellow Edward Alden writes that the tariffs that Trump announced against three of the United States’ biggest trading partners—Canada, China, and Mexico—look poised to shatter the era of a rules-based order with global economic ramifications. Read the article

Tariffs on Trading Partners: Can the President Do That?

CFR Fellow Inu Manak explains that though Congress holds power over regulating commerce with foreign nations, it has incrementally delegated significant authority to the president, giving him broad discretion to take trade actions. Read the report

What Are Tariffs?

Trump has begun his second term with a raft of tariff threats to bolster his immigration priorities, support local industries, and compete with China. Explore how these taxes work and how they’ve been used historically

Bracing for a Trade War

As CFR President Michael Froman summed up during a briefing for reporters and CFR members, Trump’s tariffs represent a changing dynamic situation involving economic, strategic, diplomatic, and political issues. Watch the discussion as CFR experts share insights around Trump’s announced tariffs and what they could mean for North American trade, U.S. alliances, and global competition.

U.S. Tariffs Put China in a Difficult Spot

As CFR Senior Fellow Brad Setser said to Keith Bradsher of the New York Times, “China does face a problem if President Trump is determined to close all of the United States bilateral trade deficits no matter the collateral damage to the U.S. economy.” Read more in the New York Times

Trump Wields U.S. Power With Unclear Consequences

“The United States is now signaling that tariffs are an all-purpose club to be used for whatever policy goal the president wishes,” Edward Alden said to Ana Swanson of the New York Times. “That formula will create enormous, in many ways unprecedented, uncertainty not just in North America but in the entire global economy.” Read more in the New York Times

Council on Foreign Relations

58 East 68th Street, New York, NY 10065

1777 F Street, NW, Washington, DC 20006

Manage Your Email Preferences

View in Browser