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Simon Lester

Do Foreign Digital Regulations "Discriminate" against U.S. Firms? The Case of Korea

Just about everybody agrees that "non-discrimination" is a core principle of the trading system, but what exactly do we mean by it? What is the role of intent and effect? Governments who feel like their companies are being hurt by a foreign regulation often focus on the effect,

More (and More and More) Trump on Tariffs

As I mentioned last week, Trump constantly talks about tariffs, but that hasn't led to voters thinking of tariffs and trade as a top policy issue. After I did my post, Trump gave an interview in which he talked about tariffs even more than usual. (Normally I provide

Is Trade Policy on the Ballot in the U.S. Presidential Election?

A recent AP piece on U.S. Trade Rep. Katherine Tai's trade policies is entitled: "Top US trade official sees progress in helping workers. Voters will decide if her approach continues." It then leads off with this: As the U.S. trade representative, Katherine Tai is

Guest Post: Commerce Department Regulations on “Connected” Vehicles: Potential Impacts on Chinese, Mexican, and other Automotive Imports to the United States

This is a guest post from David A. Gantz, JD, JSM, Will Clayton Fellow for Trade and International Economics, Rice University’s Baker Institute for Public policy, Houston and Michelle Michot Foss, PhD, Fellow in Energy, Minerals and Materials, Baker Institute Introduction: The Proposed Regulations On Monday, September 23, The

Guest Post: A Tribute to Frieder Roessler from Werner Zdouc

This is a guest post by Werner Zdouc. The piece will be published in a forthcoming issue of the World Trade Review. A universalist, shaping destinies, staying true to himself Werner Zdouc Frieder Rössler was a principled pragmatist, who throughout his career never compromised on his high intellectual and ethical

Trade Balances and Trade Interventions and Trade Protectionism

Last week, finance professor Michael Pettis spoke at an event about a new paper he co-authored. From what I can tell, Pettis has had some influence recently on the U.S. trade policy debate, but I have found his views hard to decipher. He and I have interacted a bit

Seminar on Legal Architecture of Remedies in the WTO Agreement

Announcement: Interested WTO lawyers are invited to a one-hour academic feedback seminar on Zoom, hosted by Prof. Geraldo Vidigal, University of Amsterdam, to comment on a draft article by Lothar Ehring, written to pay tribute to Frieder Roessler. The paper explains the legal architecture of remedies in the WTO Agreement

The EU-Singapore Digital Trade Agreement: Experimentation with Data Flows Obligations and Exceptions Continues

Over the past couple years, I've been looking at how digital trade agreements set out data flows obligations and exceptions. I've got a new one to examine, as the EU has published a pre-legal scrub version of its digital trade agreement with Singapore, building on their

Will USMCA Be Renewed in 2026?

At a Baker Institute event last week, C.J. Mahoney, who was a Deputy U.S. Trade Representative during the Trump administration, argued that renewal of the USMCA under the Article 34.7 review clause was unlikely to happen in 2026. He first provided some background on the provision: ... USMCA

New Discussions of Appeal/Review in the DS Reform Process

In July, I mentioned that the the WTO Dispute Settlement Reform Process is underway, and that people can follow it a few weeks behind the actual developments, as meeting minutes are derestricted. The Minutes of the Heads of Delegation meeting from July 18 are now available. Focusing on the Appeal/