International economic law and policy blog

International Economic Law and Policy Blog

Sign in Subscribe

Latest — 17 Nov 2025

Should Congress Codify Trump's Trade Deals?

For the purposes of domestic law, the trade deals negotiated by the Trump administration have been concluded as executive agreements, and there is no indication that the administration wants Congress to approve them via statute. Some members of Congress have raised this possibility though.

Impact of the October 2025 US-China Detente On United States-Mexico Trade

On October 29, 2025, President Trump and Chinese Communist Party Chairman Li concluded a limited detente in their ongoing trade war. (U.S-China Trade Agreement) This trade deal, largely a return to the status quo in February-April 2025 is scheduled to continue for a year. The compromise was essential to

Reviewing the USMCA

Pursuant to the review of the USMCA provided for in Article 34.7, USTR has requested comments and is holding a hearing. USTR's comments portal shows 1,515 comments submitted, so a lot of people had things to say!

Trump's Cambodia Trade Deal, Arms Exports, and the Role of Non-Trade Concessions

In this post, I'm going to talk about some aspects of the recent U.S. trade deal with Cambodia that I haven't heard raised yet, including the following questions: (1) Is the decision to allow U.S. arms exports to Cambodia pursuant to this deal designed to boost U.S. manufacturing?

Is Section 122 of the 1974 Trade Act a Fall-Back Option for Trump to Impose Tariffs?

Without IEEPA authority, as we have all discussed, where there is a will, there is a way. In all likelihood, this way involves the expanded use of other statutory authorities, such as Section 232 of the 1962 Trade Expansion Act and Section 301 of the Trade Act of 1974. In

Roundup of IEEPA Hearing Commentary

I listened to today's Supreme Court hearing on the IEEPA tariff cases, but it was clear to me that I am not well-positioned to offer good insights on how the Court might rule. (The transcript is here if anyone wants to give this kind of tea leaf reading a shot themselves).

Economic and National Security Provisions in U.S. Trade Agreements

A few weeks ago, I wrote a post cautioning everyone to "Beware the 'Securitization' of Trade Policy." So far, however, it looks like my post has been a big failure, as many people seem to be throwing caution to the wind, and instead of being wary

Bound Rates and the Stakes of the Cambodian Trade Deal

Far from being incoherent, the United States’ recent moves against trading partners suggest a unique restructuring of its economic structure, with executive-dominated foreign investments planned to drive much of its future economic growth. I’ll focus on the Agreement concluded with Cambodia for this post. Cambodia has not signed a

The Future of U.S. Big Tech and Social Media (and a Quick Thought on Manufacturing)

As the saying goes, it's difficult to make predictions, especially about the future, but in a piece I wrote for the Baker Institute, I argue that the social media landscape is going to become smaller and more global, with U.S. big tech control declining. Is this just

Tracking Foreign Investments in the U.S. Pursuant to Trump's Trade Deals

According to President Trump and his administration, one of the most important elements of the trade deals they are negotiating right now is the commitments being made by foreign governments and companies to invest in the U.S. The aggregate figures mentioned in this regard have been as high as