In the customs business, delays are becoming less common

Sep 12, 2022
As congestion eases at some ports, "we know the fixed date of when freight is arriving now," said customs broker Gretchen Blough.
 "Customs kind of takes a special kind of person.," says customs broker Gretchen Blough. “We’re kind of the Ally Sheedy of 'The Breakfast Club.'”
Patrick T. Fallon/AFP via Getty Images

U.S. Trade Representative Katherine Tai: Globalization 1.0 was “fragile.” Will 2.0 be more resilient?

May 2, 2022
Tai outlined what globalization 2.0 will look like and what those changes mean for the American people at the Milken Institute Global Conference.
U.S. Trade Representative Katherine Tai in conversation with Kai Ryssdal at the Milken Institute Global Conference on May 2.
Milken Institute

Remember the trade war with China? U.S. businesses are still feeling it.

Apr 19, 2022
Kevin Feig's Florida auto parts company is paying the U.S. government up to $600,000 a month in import duties.
"You have to deal with what you're given. And right now, we've accepted the fact that the tariffs aren't going away," says Kevin Feig, president of Foreign Parts Distributors in Miami. Above, a worker assembles car door unit in Chicago.
Tim Boyle/Getty Images

The customs business has become all about handling the unexpected

Apr 13, 2022
"Everything is just a constant pivot," says Gretchen Blough, a customs broker in Erie, Pennsylvania.
"There hasn't been a lot of warning to some of the issues that have happened, and we've just had to make do," Gretchen Blough says of the customs business.
Joe Raedle/Getty Images

Trade deals improve relations with U.S. allies — gradually

Mar 23, 2022
A new trade deal with the U.K. will erase Trump-era tariffs on steel and aluminum imported into the U.S., and motorcycles and whiskey exported to the U.K.
Paul Ellis/AFP via Getty Images

If China aids Russia, what options would the U.S. have?

Mar 16, 2022
The U.S. could expand tariffs on Chinese goods — but that may raise prices for American consumers.
Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping met in Beijing on Feb. 4. U.S. National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan has promised consequences if China were to assist Russia in its war against Ukraine.
Alexei Druzhinin/Sputnik/AFP via Getty Images

Debate over solar-equipment tariffs heats up

Nov 5, 2021
Some say keeping Trump-era levies on foreign-made panels and cells will help the U.S. meet Biden's domestic goals for renewable energy.
Solar-panel production in the U.S. has tripled since Trump-era tariffs were imposed, but imports still make up 85% of sales.
Andrew Caballero-Reynolds/AFP via Getty Images

For public good, not for profit.

U.S. and EU trade agreement seeks reduction of "dirty steel"

Nov 1, 2021
The pact lifts U.S. tariffs on European steel and European Union duties on bourbon and Harley-Davidson motorcycles.
President Joe Biden at the G-20 summit in Rome, where the U.S. announced it would roll back tariffs imposed on imported EU steel and aluminum.
Brendan Smialowski/AFP via Getty Images

Biden administration squeaks open door to tariff exemptions

Oct 11, 2021
Some companies that won exemptions from levies on Chinese goods in the past will be able to apply for relief again.
President Joe Biden at the White House. The administration is reopening the application process for companies seeking to avoid paying tariffs on certain goods imported from China.
Mandel Ngan/AFP via Getty Images

U.S., EU suspend subsidies dispute to focus on China

Jun 16, 2021
Importers on both sides of the Atlantic will save billions in retaliatory tariffs for imports.
While the U.S. and the EU have been fighting over which side unfairly subsidizes aircraft production, China has been building up its own aircraft industry, said Eswar Prasad at Cornell University.
Kenzo Tribouillard/AFP via Getty Images