Trade | Council on Foreign Relations

NAFTA and the USMCA: Weighing the Impact of North American Trade

President Trump reached a deal with Canada and Mexico to restructure the North American Free Trade Agreement, hoping a new trilateral accord will reinvigorate the U.S. manufacturing sector.

Backgrounder by Andrew Chatzky, James McBride, and Mohammed Aly Sergie Jul 1, 2020

Virtual Meeting: Trade and the COVID-19 Pandemic

Panelists discuss how trade policies across the world have complicated the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic and how these policies can be adjusted to better manage the global public health crisis.

Event with Marney L. Cheek and Jennifer Hillman Jun 5, 2020

Tracking Currency Manipulation

Currency manipulation is one way countries can shift patterns of trade in their favor. But currency intervention by U.S. trading partners leads to job losses in parts of the U.S. economy, which is one reason why the United States has run persistent trade deficits.

Interactive by Brad W. Setser and Dylan Yalbir Oct 7, 2020

Cuba

U.S.-Cuba Relations

Communist Cuba was a major foreign policy challenge for the United States during the Cold War. The bilateral relationship thawed considerably under President Obama, but the Trump administration reimposed restrictions.

Backgrounder by CFR.org Editors May 12, 2021
China

State and Local Officials Webinar: Responding to China's Belt and Road Initiative

Charles Boustany Jr., partner at Capitol Counsel and former representative from the state of Louisiana, and Jennifer Hillman, senior fellow for trade and international political economy at CFR, and D…

Webinar by Charles Boustany Jr., Jennifer Hillman and Daniel Rosen May 6, 2021 State and Local Webinars
Energy and Environment

U.S.-Canada Pipeline Dispute, Harris and AMLO Talk Migration, and More

A major fuel pipeline from Canada to the United States could be shut down, U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris and Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador (AMLO) meet virtually to discuss migration concerns, and the European Union and India are expected to revive trade talks.

Podcast with James M. Lindsay and Robert McMahon May 6, 2021 The World Next Week

Experts in this Topic

Edward Alden

Bernard L. Schwartz Senior Fellow

Alyssa Ayres

Alyssa Ayres

Adjunct Senior Fellow for India, Pakistan, and South Asia

Thomas J. Bollyky

Senior Fellow for Global Health, Economics, and Development and Director of the Global Health Program

Jendayi E. Frazer

Jendayi E. Frazer

Adjunct Senior Fellow for Africa Studies

Michael Froman

Distinguished Fellow

Jennifer Hillman

Senior Fellow for Trade and International Political Economy

Shannon K. O'Neil

Vice President, Deputy Director of Studies, and Nelson and David Rockefeller Senior Fellow for Latin America Studies

Latin America

Transition 2021 Series: The U.S. Approach to Latin America and the Caribbean

Panelists discuss how the Biden administration will approach relations with Latin America and the Caribbean, including issues pertaining to trade, migration, climate, and challenges to democratic governance. The Transition 2021 series examines the major foreign policy issues confronting the Biden administration.

Virtual Event by Paul J. Angelo, Mauricio Mesquita Moreira and Celina Realuyo May 3, 2021
China

Academic Webinar: U.S. Response to China’s Belt and Road Initiative

Susan A. Thornton, senior fellow at Yale University’s Paul Tsai China Center and visiting lecturer in law, leads a conversation on the challenges that China’s Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) poses to …

Webinar by Susan A. Thornton April 7, 2021 Academic and Higher Education Webinars
Competitiveness

Competing with China: Lessons From the Belt and Road

To compete with China's Belt and Road, the U.S. should focus on R&D, immigration, technology, and trade.

Blog Post by Jennifer Hillman and Alex Tippett April 1, 2021 Renewing America
Supply Chains

Global Supply Chains in the Era of COVID-19

Our panelists examine the vulnerabilities in global supply chains exposed by the COVID-19 pandemic, resiliency options such as supplier diversification, reshoring critical industries, and stockpiling vital supplies, and the effect of such steps on international trade.

Virtual Event by Edward Alden, Emily J. Blanchard and Philip J. Venables March 31, 2021 Greenberg Center for Geoeconomic Studies
Asia

The China-Pakistan Economic Corridor—Hard Reality Greets BRI’s Signature Initiative

The Belt and Road Initiative's flagship project in Pakistan is struggling to fulfill China's hopes.

Blog Post by David Sacks March 30, 2021 Asia Unbound
Climate Change

Extreme Weather Worsens, Myanmar’s Armed Forces Day, and More

Extreme weather events ramp up in Australia and the United States; Myanmar’s military junta marks Armed Forces Day; and leaders from Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay, and Uruguay convene for a virtual trade summit.

Podcast with James M. Lindsay March 25, 2021 The World Next Week
China

China’s Belt and Road: Implications for the United States

The Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), Chinese President Xi Jinping’s signature foreign policy undertaking and the world’s largest infrastructure program, poses a significant challenge to U.S. economic, political, climate change, security, and global health interests.

Task Force Report by Jacob Lew, Gary Roughead, Jennifer Hillman and David Sacks March 23, 2021
China

U.S. Relations With China

Since 1949, U.S.-China relations have evolved from tense standoffs to a complex mix of intensifying diplomacy, growing international rivalry, and increasingly intertwined economies.

Timeline by CFR.org Editors March 17, 2021
Trade

Europe and the Prospects for WTO Reform

The United States should recognize, and attempt to seize, the opportunity on WTO Appellate Body reform being offered by the European Union.

Blog Post by Jennifer Hillman and Alex Tippett March 10, 2021 The Internationalist
International Organizations

Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala: A Well-Qualified New Leader for the WTO

When Robert Azevedo stepped down last year from the post of director general of the World Trade Organization (WTO), the trade body’s top leadership position, former Nigerian Finance Minister Ngozi Ok…

Blog Post by John Campbell February 17, 2021 Africa in Transition
World Trade Organization (WTO)

What’s Next for the WTO?

In the wake of President Trump’s combative approach to trade, and with major negotiations stalled, the future of global trade rules is in doubt.

Backgrounder by James McBride, Andrew Chatzky and Anshu Siripurapu February 16, 2021
Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP)

What’s Next for the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP)?

Though President Trump withdrew from the TPP, the remaining members of the trade pact have forged ahead with a new version, leaving the U.S. role in the Asia-Pacific in question.

Backgrounder by James McBride, Andrew Chatzky and Anshu Siripurapu February 1, 2021