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Biden's trade policy will prioritize workers' rights

Mar 2, 2021
Biden wants to use trade policy to advance racial equity, fight climate change and take on China’s "coercive" trade practices.
The new administration plans to strengthen U.S. competitiveness in global trade and encourage Americans to buy American-made products.
Bill Pugliano/Getty Images

African countries form new trading bloc

The African Continental Free Trade Agreement creates a $3.4 trillion economic bloc covering over a billion people.
African Union leaders meet on July 5 in Niamey, Niger. The launch of the AfCFTA was the focus of a summit held in Niamey.
Issouf Sanogo/AFP/Getty Images

Mexican auto makers hopeful, with movement on U.S. trade agreement

Sep 27, 2018
But there are still obstacles ahead.
Mark Wilson / Getty Images

New NAFTA labor standards may be difficult to enforce

Aug 29, 2018
As part of the ongoing renegotiation of the North American Free Trade Agreement, the United States and Mexico have tentatively agreed to new higher labor standards. One provision that has automakers’ attention requires 40-45 percent of a car be made by workers earning at least $16 per hour. The goal is to incentivize car companies […]
Traders and financial professionals work at the opening bell on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE), August 27, 2018 in New York City. The Dow was up over 200 points at the open, following news that the United States and Mexico are closer to a deal on NAFTA. 
Drew Angerer/Getty Images

U.S.-Japan trade talks open today in Washington

Aug 9, 2018
Japan trade talks are set to open today in Washington, D.C. for the first bilateral trade meeting since President Donald Trump pulled the U.S. out of the Trans-Pacific Partnership last year. It’s a high level meeting between Japanese Economic Minister Toshimitsu Motegi and U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer. Negotiating a free trade agreement and tariffs […]
Left, U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer and Japanese Economic Minister Toshimitsu Motegi are meeting today in Washington, D.C. on trade.
Chris Kleponis - Pool/Getty Images and ERIC PIERMONT/AFP/Getty Images

How liberalism should adapt to the needs of the 21st century

Apr 25, 2018
A conversation with Zanny Minton Beddoes, the editor-in-chief of the Economist.
Numerous national flags are seen in front of the United Nations Office (UNOG) on June 8, 2008 in Geneva, Switzerland. 
Johannes Simon/Getty Images

Free trade gets a boost in Africa

Apr 13, 2018
Dozens of African nations signed on to a new trade deal. Some key nations still have not.
A vendor sells fruits and vegetables at the large market of Adjame, a popular district of Abidjan, Côte d'Ivoire, on Aug. 10, 2017. 
ISSOUF SANOGO/AFP/Getty Images

For public good, not for profit.

Purple faces over Britain's new blue passports

Apr 12, 2018
The government's favoring of a Franco-Dutch bid to make the documents raises ire.
 In this photo illustration, a British passport is seen in front of the flag of the European Union on Oct. 13, 2017 in Bath, England. 
Matt Cardy/Getty Images

Why looking at tariffs on one product doesn't show the whole picture on trade

Apr 9, 2018
Early this morning, at about 6 a.m. Eastern, the president did what he often does and tweeted.  It was a complaint about Chinese tariffs. China, he claimed, imposed tariffs of 25 percent on U.S. automakers, whereas the U.S. imposes tariffs of only 2.5 percent. “Does that sound like free or fair trade,” he wrote. “No, […]

The trade war is over (I lost)

Apr 9, 2018
The president says they're easy, but FiveThirtyEight's simulator gave me a different experience.
A worker standing at a dock of a port in Shanghai on March 22, 2018.
JOHANNES EISELE/AFP/Getty Images