Industrial Policy & Trade Monitor· 2666 actions· ✨ 90 recent

On June 2, 2026, USTR published final actionability findings in 60 parallel Section 301(b) investigations — the largest simultaneous Section 301 action in US history — determining that all 60 economies maintain unreasonable acts, policies, or practices by failing to impose or effectively enforce a prohibition on imports produced with forced labor. USTR proposed two additional duty rates: 10% on the 14 economies with partial forced-labor regimes (Canada, Ecuador, EU, Indonesia, Mexico, Pakistan, Argentina, Bangladesh, Cambodia, El Salvador, Guatemala, Malaysia, Taiwan, UK) and 12.5% on the remaining 46 economies. Tariff rates remain proposed pending a July 7, 2026 public hearing and subsequent finalization; the actionability determination is final.

Presidential decree signed by President Claudia Sheinbaum and published in the evening edition of the Diario Oficial de la Federación on 23 April 2026, in force 24 April 2026. The decree amends the Tariff of the Ley de los Impuestos Generales de Importación y de Exportación (LIGIE/TIGIE) and the Decreto que establece diversos Programas de Promoción Sectorial (PROSEC), imposing MFN import duties at 5%, 10%, 15%, 25%, 30% or 35% ad valorem on 185 tariff fractions covering chemical products, cosmetics, paper and cardboard, textiles, steel, graphic arts, aluminum manufactures, auto parts, electrical material, bicycles, musical instruments, furniture, wind turbines, and trailers. Goods originating in countries with which Mexico has a free-trade agreement remain eligible for preferential treatment, so practical incidence falls on China and other non-FTA suppliers (Korea, India, Vietnam, Thailand, Brazil, Indonesia, Taiwan, UAE, South Africa). Paired PROSEC modifications add tariff fractions to Article 5 sections I, II.b and XIX (electrical, electronic, automotive and auto-parts industries) at exempt (EX) rates.

The European Commission adopted Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2026/734 of 26 March 2026, imposing a provisional anti-dumping duty on imports of synthetic continuous filament yarns of aliphatic polyamides (nylon yarn) originating in China, following an investigation initiated in July 2025. The duty entered into force on 28 March 2026, with a residual rate of 90.1% of the net free-at-Union-frontier price for non-cooperating exporters and individual company rates ranging from 57.7% to 67.1% for cooperating producers. The measure covers CN codes 5402 31 00, 5402 45 00, 5402 51 00 and 5402 61 00, and importers must post security deposits equal to the provisional duty to release goods for free circulation in the EU pending a definitive determination.

On 19 February 2026 Presidents Trump and Prabowo finalised the Agreement on Reciprocal Trade (ART) between the United States and Indonesia. The deal locks the US reciprocal tariff on Indonesian imports at 19% (down from the 32% threatened in April 2025), with 0% on a defined list of products and a textile/apparel quota benchmarked to US-cotton/MMF inputs. Indonesia commits to remove export restrictions on all industrial commodities — explicitly including critical minerals across the full value chain — and to grant US investors national treatment in mineral exploration, mining, processing and export. Indonesia also agrees to eliminate tariff barriers on >99% of US-origin goods, while a Freeport-McMoRan MOU extends the Grasberg copper-mine licence (~USD 10bn/yr revenue, world's 2nd largest copper mine) and a parallel commercial package totalling ~USD 33bn (energy USD 15bn, aerospace incl. Boeing USD 13.5bn, agriculture USD 4.5bn) is signed alongside.

On 9 February 2026 USTR Ambassador Jamieson Greer and Bangladesh Adviser Sheikh Bashir Uddin signed the Agreement on Reciprocal Trade (ART) between the United States and Bangladesh in Washington DC — USTR's first ART signing in South Asia, preceding the US-India interim-trade-framework finalisation by three days. The deal locks the US reciprocal tariff on Bangladesh-originating goods at 19% (down from 35% under the April 2025 IEEPA regime) and establishes a zero-percent mechanism for products on the Annex III aligned- partner list (EO 14346, 5 September 2025). Bangladesh commits to significant preferential market access for US industrial and agricultural goods — including chemicals, machinery, motor vehicles, medical devices, ICT equipment, energy products, soy, dairy, beef, poultry, tree nuts, and fruit — and to eliminating specified non- tariff barriers including acceptance of US Federal motor-vehicle safety and emissions standards, FDA certificates, and prior marketing authorisations for medical devices and pharmaceuticals.

On 6 February 2026 Presidents Trump and Modi announced a framework for an Interim Trade Agreement that resets the bilateral tariff posture installed in 2025. Two operative instruments: (i) an executive order signed 6 February eliminating, effective 7 February 2026, the additional 25% IEEPA "Russian-oil" duty on Indian imports imposed by EO 14329 (27 August 2025), conditional on India's commitment to cease buying Russian crude and to expand defence cooperation; and (ii) reduction of the EO 14257 reciprocal-tariff rate on India from 25% to 18% on listed product categories (textiles and apparel, leather and footwear, plastics and rubber, organic chemicals, home décor, artisanal products, certain machinery), to take effect on finalisation of the Interim Agreement. India commits to eliminate or reduce tariffs on all US industrial goods and a wide range of agricultural products (DDGs, red sorghum, tree nuts, fresh and processed fruit, soybean oil, wine, spirits) and to purchase >USD 500bn of US energy, ICT, coal, aircraft and aircraft parts, and precious-metals products over five years. The framework also commits the parties to negotiating "robust, ambitious, and mutually beneficial digital trade rules" and to addressing non-tariff barriers in medical devices, ICT import licensing, and food/agricultural standards. US tariff reductions on Indian generic pharmaceuticals, gems, diamonds, aircraft parts, and certain automotive components are flagged as contingent on completion of the full Interim Agreement.

On 27 January 2026 the European Union and India announced the conclusion of negotiations on a comprehensive Free Trade Agreement at the EU-India summit hosted at Hyderabad House in New Delhi, attended by PM Narendra Modi, Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and Council President António Costa. The deal — described by both leaders as the "mother of all deals" — covers ~25% of world GDP and ~2 billion people. The EU eliminates duties on 91% of tariff lines (covering 99.3% of bilateral trade by value); India eliminates duties on 86% of lines (covering 96.6% by value). Headline cuts include Indian tariffs on EU wines (150% → 75% at entry into force, falling to 20%), olive oil (45% → 0% over five years) and processed agri-food (up to 50% eliminated); EU tariffs are reduced/eliminated on Indian textiles, leather/footwear, gems and jewelry, marine products, tea, coffee, spices and certain agricultural and steel products. The agreement still requires Council adoption, European Parliament consent and approval by India's Union Council of Ministers; entry into force is expected in early 2027. Companion instruments concluded at the same summit include an EU-India Security and Defence Partnership and a Mobility and Migration Agreement.

Cumhurbaşkanı Kararı No. 10790 (Resmi Gazete 31 December 2025, issue 33124 3rd reprint), in force 1 January 2026, restructures Türkiye's annual import-tariff architecture across 4,344 product lines from non-EU origins. The decree (i) introduces or expands additional customs duty (Ek Mali Yükümlülük / İlave Gümrük Vergisi) of 5%–48% on non-EU imports of iron and non-alloy steel, copper, aluminium, and base-metal household goods; (ii) introduces forward-looking import-surveillance measures across 172 products under 36 notifications, with reference-price floors that cap effective duty relief on under-valued shipments; (iii) updates duties on 324 Customs Tariff Statistical Positions across 21 chapters (219 HS lines raised by 2.4–15 percentage points; 8 lines under HS 7225/7228/8528/8529 raised by 3–14 points; 2 lines reduced by 6 points); (iv) opens duty-free tariff quotas for 35 industrial-product categories — including 27 battery / lithium-cell HS codes through 1 February 2027, 8m m² of plastic-treated textiles through 31 December 2026, and 40,725 tons of organic chemicals and aluminium sheets (16 February–31 December 2026); and (v) imposes a permit regime (6-month validity) on used and refurbished goods. EU and EU-Customs-Union origins remain exempt under A.TR preferential rules; the structural asymmetry vs non-EU partners is the core mechanism. Stated rationale (Ministry of Trade): support domestic production, prevent unfair competition, increase employment, reduce the current-account deficit.

Decree reforming various tariff fractions of the General Import and Export Duties Tariff (TIGIE), published in the Diario Oficial de la Federación on 29 December 2025 and in force 1 January 2026. The reform, approved by Congress as a statutory amendment to the LIGIE (Chamber of Deputies and Senate, Dec 2025) and signed by President Claudia Sheinbaum, raises MFN import duties to between 5% and 50% ad valorem on 1,463 tariff lines covering more than 20 chapters of the TIGIE, spanning automotive, auto parts, textiles, apparel, footwear, steel, aluminum, plastics, paper, leather, furniture, glass, toys, appliances and cosmetics. The increases apply only to goods originating in countries without a free trade agreement with Mexico — principally China, South Korea, India, Vietnam, Thailand, Brazil, Indonesia, Chinese Taipei, the UAE, and South Africa. The decree formalises at statutory level the September 2024 Sheinbaum executive order placing a 50% duty on finished passenger vehicles from non-FTA states and is framed by the Secretaría de Economía and SHCP as the operational tariff instrument of Plan México (2025-01-21).

The European Commission adopted Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2026/1063 of 12 May 2026, imposing a provisional anti-dumping duty on imports of PET spunbond originating in the People's Republic of China — non-woven needle-punched sheets of polyester filaments, whether or not reinforced by glass fibres, weighing more than 70 g/m2, thickness 0.5-1.8 mm, impregnated with one or more binders, falling under CN codes ex 5603 13 90, 5603 14 20 and ex 5603 14 80. Provisional duties range from 45.6% to 50.0% depending on the exporting producer, entering into force on 14 May 2026 (the day after Official Journal publication) and applying until 13 November 2026, by which date the Commission must decide on definitive measures. The measure follows an investigation initiated on 15 September 2025 (OJ C/2025/5010) pursuant to a complaint lodged on 8 August 2025 by Freudenberg Performance Materials and Johns Manville, alleging that dumped Chinese imports — whose EU market share rose from roughly 0-5% to 15-20% between 2021 and 2024 — caused material injury to Union producers.

Brazil's Foreign Trade Executive Committee (GECEX/CAMEX) imposed definitive anti-dumping duties for up to five years on imports of synthetic polyester fibres (NCM 5503.20.90) from China, India, Thailand, and Vietnam, following a petition filed by ABRAFAS (Brazilian Association of Artificial and Synthetic Fibre Producers) in October 2023 and a six-month provisional measure (Resolução Gecex 653/2024) applied from October 2024. Duties are levied as specific tariffs in USD per metric tonne: China residual USD 390.94/t (Zhejiang Hengyi group USD 74.98/t), India USD 194.69/t, Thailand USD 171.21/t, Vietnam USD 297.95/t. Two named exporters — Zhongthai Chemical Fiber Co., Ltd. (Thailand) and Vietnam New Century Polyester Fibre Co., Ltd. (Vietnam) — are explicitly excluded from the measure.

India's DGFT issued Notification No. 07/2025-26 on 17 May 2025, with immediate effect, restricting the entry points through which Bangladesh goods may be imported into India. All ready-made garments (RMG) from Bangladesh are barred from land ports entirely and may enter only via Nhava Sheva and Kolkata seaports; processed food, rubber and plastic goods, and wooden furniture are barred from Land Customs Stations (LCSs) and Integrated Check Posts (ICPs) in Assam, Meghalaya, Tripura, Mizoram, and at Changrabandha and Fulbari in West Bengal. The notification is widely read as a retaliatory measure responding to Bangladesh's April 2025 NBR land-port yarn-import ban, and is the first bilateral India-Bangladesh trade-restriction instrument filed in the IPTM register.

Bangladesh's National Board of Revenue, acting on a March 2025 Ministry of Commerce directive, issued a notification on 13 April 2025 prohibiting yarn imports through all land-border customs stations, including Benapole, Bhomra, Banglabandha, Burimari, and Sonamasjid. Imports of yarn may continue only through seaports and airports. The stated rationale is systematic under-invoicing of land-port yarn shipments — declared values were found significantly below Chattogram customs-house benchmark prices — which NBR and the Bangladesh Trade and Tariff Commission concluded was severely damaging domestic spinning-mill competitiveness. The restriction is the first BD import-restrictive measure in the IPTM register and triggered India's retaliatory DGFT Notification 07/2025-26 of 17 May 2025 restricting entry of Bangladeshi exports into India.

Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2025/778 of 14 April 2025, adopted under Regulation (EU) No 654/2014 (the EU enforcement regulation for international trade rights), reinstates the EU's 2018 and 2020 commercial rebalancing measures against the United States and adds new countermeasures in response to the second Trump administration's 10 February 2025 Section 232 proclamations, which restored a universal 25% tariff on steel imports and raised the aluminium tariff to 25% effective 12 March 2025 (filed as 2025-02-11-us-section-232-steel-aluminum-global-tariff-reinstatement). The combined package targets approximately €26 billion of EU imports from the United States — matching the scope of US measures affecting EU exports — and combines the reinstatement of pre-existing duties on a first tranche of products (steel, aluminium, agricultural goods, motorcycles, and other industrial items originally subject to the 2018 and 2020 lists) with new duties on roughly €18 billion of additional US-origin goods spanning poultry, beef, certain seafood, nuts, eggs, dairy, sugar and vegetables on the agricultural side, and steel, aluminium, textiles, leather, appliances, plastics and wood products on the industrial side. Tariff rates layer onto MFN duties at up to 50% for some products, mirroring the structure of the 2018 measures. On the same day the Commission published Implementing Regulation (EU) 2025/786, which suspends application of Articles 2 and 3 of 2025/778 for 90 days, until 14 July 2025, to allow space for bilateral negotiations following the US 9 April 2025 announcement of a 90-day pause on its own reciprocal-tariff regime (2025-04-02-us-trump-reciprocal-tariff-regime). The legal scaffolding therefore exists and is in force, but no duties were collected during the suspension window. This is the first standalone EU rebalancing instrument adopted against the United States in the second Trump administration and the first major use of Reg 654/2014 since the 2018-2020 Section 232 episode.

President Claudia Sheinbaum's government published in the Diario Oficial de la Federación on 19 Dec 2024 a decree amending the General Import & Export Tax Law (TIGIE) and the IMMEX Decree. The decree imposes a 35% temporary import duty on 138 finished-apparel tariff lines (Chapters 61, 62, 63 plus tariff item 9404.40.01) and a 15% duty on 17 textile-input tariff lines (Chapters 52, 55, 58, 60), totalling 155 fractions. Concurrently, 302 tariff fractions in Chapters 61/62/63 are removed from IMMEX duty-deferral eligibility (moved out of Annex II Section C into Annex I). The measure exempts countries with which Mexico has an FTA (notably USMCA partners) and is in force from 20 Dec 2024 until 23 Apr 2026.

Mexico's Ley de Comercio Exterior (Foreign Trade Act, LCE), published in the Diario Oficial de la Federación on 27 July 1993 and entering into force 28 July 1993, is the foundational statute governing Mexico's entire external trade regulatory architecture. The LCE establishes the legal authority for the SECOFI/SE-administered antidumping (AD), countervailing duty (CVD), and safeguard investigation regime (Titles V–VII); the TIGIE tariff-schedule and tariff-classification framework; the IMMEX maquila and PROSEC sectoral-promotion programs; rules of origin for USMCA and other preferential trade agreements; and Mexico's export- licensing and strategic-material restriction framework. The LCE has been amended repeatedly through 2021 and remains the overarching parent authority for all Mexican trade-remedy proceedings administered by UPCI (Unidad de Prácticas Comerciales Internacionales) under the Secretaría de Economía.

The Tariff Act of 1930 (Pub. L. 71-361, 46 Stat. 590, codified principally at 19 U.S.C. Chapter 4) is the foundational US statute governing customs revenue, tariff classification, and trade-remedy administration, signed by President Hoover on 17 June 1930. The Act's original Smoot-Hawley tariff schedules are widely cited as a contributing factor to the contraction of global trade during the Great Depression, but the statute's enduring significance lies in its creation of (i) the Title VII antidumping (AD) and countervailing duty (CVD) proceedings framework administered jointly by Commerce ITA and the USITC — the parent authority for every US AD/CVD order in force today — and (ii) Section 337 (19 U.S.C. §1337), the USITC unfair-import and IP-exclusion-order regime under which ~50+ active investigations are conducted annually against semiconductor, biotech, electronics, and other technology imports. Title I's customs-valuation and HTSUS tariff- classification framework underpins all US import-revenue collection; Title VII AD/CVD authority was updated by the GATT Tokyo Round Trade Agreements Act of 1979 and the Uruguay Round Agreements Act of 1994 (URAA) to align with WTO Antidumping and Subsidies Agreements.