The Workplace of america Commerce Consultant (USTR) has dropped a bombshell with its 2025 Nationwide Commerce Estimate Report on International Commerce Boundaries, shining a obtrusive highlight on the soiled methods international nations are utilizing to kneecap American exporters.
The USTR, below the regular hand of Trump-appointee Ambassador Jamieson Greer, has laid naked 10 egregious practices that show the world isn’t enjoying truthful—and it’s excessive time America stops rolling over.
For too lengthy, the Biden administration and its predecessors have let international governments run roughshod over our farmers, producers, and tech innovators, all whereas preaching the gospel of “free commerce,” however not below Trump’s administration.
On April 2, 2025, Wednesday, President Donald Trump declared “Liberation Day” throughout a ceremony within the White Home Rose Backyard, unveiling a collection of sweeping tariffs geared toward lowering america’ reliance on international items.
He introduced a minimal baseline tariff of 10% on all imported items, with increased “reciprocal” tariffs on nations that impose important tariffs on U.S. exports.
Ambassador Jamieson Greer launched the next assertion backing President Donald Trump’s determination to invoke the Worldwide Emergency Financial Powers Act (IEEPA) to implement retaliatory tariffs in response to the nationwide emergency attributable to the shortage of reciprocity in America’s bilateral commerce offers:
“At present, President Trump is taking pressing motion to guard the nationwide safety and economic system of america. The present lack of commerce reciprocity, demonstrated by our power commerce deficit, has weakened our financial and nationwide safety.
After solely 72 days in workplace, President Trump has prioritized swift motion to deliver reciprocity to our commerce relations and scale back the commerce deficit by leveling the enjoying subject for American staff and producers, reshoring American jobs, increasing our home manufacturing base, and making certain our defense-industrial base will not be depending on international adversaries—all resulting in stronger financial and nationwide safety.”
The NTE Report, launched simply days in the past, confirms what patriots have been shouting from the rooftops: our so-called buying and selling companions are rigging the sport.
From Algeria to Vietnam, listed below are the ten unfair commerce practices the USTR is looking out:
1/10: China’s non-tariff measures and excessive tariffs on U.S. agricultural merchandise—like soybeans, pork, wheat, and corn—have significantly restricted market entry for American farmers. Eradicating these limitations would generate an estimated $6 billion in extra annual exports of those merchandise.
2/10: The U.S. shrimp trade famous the damaging impacts of backed low-cost, farm-raised shrimp imports from Brazil, China, Ecuador, India, Thailand, and Vietnam. In response to NOAA Fisheries, the whole worth of U.S. shrimp fishermen’s catch fell from $522 million in 2021 to $268 million in 2023—an nearly 50% lower.
3/10: South Africa closely restricts U.S. poultry exports via excessive tariffs, anti-dumping duties, and unjustified animal well being restrictions. These limitations led to a 78% decline in exports, from $89 million in 2019 to $19 million in 2024.
4/10: Egypt’s common utilized tariff on agricultural items is 65.1%, 13 instances increased than the U.S., and among the many highest globally. Egypt has additionally raised WTO MFN tariffs on a number of merchandise, disadvantaging U.S. items whereas EU merchandise get pleasure from preferential remedy below the EU-Egypt Free Commerce Settlement.
5/10: The annual value to the U.S. economic system of counterfeit items, pirated software program, and commerce secret theft is between $225 billion and $600 billion. In 2023, China accounted for 84% of the worth of counterfeit and pirated items seized by U.S. Customs and Border Safety, together with by way of Hong Kong.
6/10: Argentina has banned U.S. reside cattle imports since 2002 as a consequence of unfounded issues over bovine spongiform encephalopathy. The consequence: a $223 million U.S. commerce deficit with Argentina in beef and beef merchandise.
7/10: Brazil has used baseless animal well being issues to delay U.S. pork imports. The U.S. agricultural commerce deficit with Brazil reached $7.0 billion in 2024.
8/10: Brazil, Argentina, Ecuador, and Vietnam prohibit or ban imports of remanufactured items, limiting U.S. exporters and stifling sustainable commerce. Eradicating these limitations may increase U.S. exports by at the least $18 billion yearly.
9/10: Unlawful, unreported, and unregulated (IUU) fishing undercuts U.S. competitiveness and prices the worldwide seafood trade as much as $50 billion per 12 months. China (with the world’s largest distant water fishing fleet) and Mexico face ongoing IUU violations and enforcement challenges below USMCA.
10/10: U.S. automakers encounter non-tariff limitations in Japan and South Korea that prohibit market entry. The U.S. auto trade loses an estimated $13.5 billion in annual exports to Japan and lowered import share in Korea as a consequence of these practices.
For extra info on these unfair commerce practices, see the 2025 Nationwide Commerce Estimate Report: USTR 2025 National Trade Estimate Report
In honor of Liberation Day, USTR is spotlighting 10 unfair commerce practices confronted by American exporters.
1/10: China’s non-tariff measures and excessive tariffs on U.S. agricultural merchandise, like soybeans, pork, wheat, and corn, have significantly restricted market entry for American… pic.twitter.com/0GnVjE0cvz
— United States Commerce Consultant (@USTradeRep) April 2, 2025
