tariffs

The initial assessment of the coronavirus effect on ocean shipping was: It will slash Chinese exports of containerized, factory-made goods and reduce China's import demand for industrial and energy bulk commodities. As it turns out, that appraisal missed a big part of the fallout picture. The...

In response to a recent World Trade Organization (WTO) decision that allowed the U.S. to impose retaliatory import tariffs on $7.5 billion of EU goods, the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) will raise the duty on imported EU aircraft from 10% to 15%, effective March 18. The WTO first...

The White House has initiated a new office to ensure that China sticks to its commitments under the "Phase One" trade deal reached between the U.S. and China on Jan. 15. The office, which will be administered by the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR), will also work with China's...

The Distilled Spirits Council of the United States (DISCUS) warned on Wednesday during its annual economic briefing in New York that a decade of expanding American whiskey exports is about to be bottled up by an ongoing U.S. trade war with the European Union. "The data is clear. These tariffs are...

The U.S. Treasury Department's Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) on Thursday said it is preparing to implement a presidential executive order that will set the stage for trade sanctions on Mali. The West African country in recent years has become a flashpoint of terrorist activity on the...

China's Customs Tariff Commission on Thursday announced it will halve existing tariffs on $75 billion of U.S. imports as part of the "phase one" trade agreement signed between China and the U.S. on Jan. 15. In a statement on China's Ministry of Finance website, the move will "promote the healthy...

After nearly three years of discordant trade talks between the U.S. and China that have stifled growth and investment in both nations while sending financial markets into a frenzy, the U.S. and China have finally reached ‘phase one' of a trade agreement. This first phase was signed by both parties...

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Everything from driverless trucks, the U.S. tariff war with China and the growth of ocean ports was discussed during the opening day of the National Industrial Transportation League (NITL) Transportation Summit in San Antonio. The 2020 NITL summit is being held through Wednesday. The summit brings...

U.S. President Donald Trump and French President Emmanuel Macron have agreed to a truce on their ongoing digital tax dispute. What Happened The United States and France have agreed that neither country will impose punitive tariffs until the end of 2020. Macron called Trump on Sunday to find common...

American wine and spirits importers are shaken by the possibility that the Trump administration may impose additional tariffs on the European Union. This month the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) said it will consider increasing an existing 25% U.S. tariff on certain European-origin...

Soybean bulls hoping for an upward jolt to break out of a recent consolidation range likely were disappointed this week. Agricultural futures moved lower this week, despite the Trade War Phase 1 deal between the U.S. and China as well as the passage of the USMCA agreement in the Senate –...

The U.S. Senate on Thursday voted overwhelmingly to approve legislation to replace the 25-year-old trade pact among the U.S., Canada and Mexico. The Senate had been expected to pass the U.S.-Canada-Mexico Agreement (USMCA) Implementation Act (H.R. 5430) since the bill cleared the House of...

The signing of the Phase One trade pact between the U.S. and China on Wednesday is a clear positive for ocean shipping demand. But the sentiment overhang on shipping equities will likely linger. There's still too much uncertainty on future trade relations between the two countries. China is...

After continued market choppiness and rising tensions, the U.S. and China have signed a trade deal that temporarily puts economic conflict on a pause. However, concern remains that this deal may not ease trade tensions for long, with numerous issues still unresolved and tariffs still lingering. But...