Let’s rewind to December 6, 2024. A deal more than 25 years in the making, covering over 700 million people and a combined GDP approaching $22 trillion, became realized. Since then, the agreement has made notable institutional progress while encountering renewed legal and political resistance that will shape its path to implementation. What’s happened recently?
Has BRICS finally produced an alternative to the “petrodollar” after twenty years? And does it live up to the hype? Depending on where you look online, key details are being left out. So, let’s slow down and review what’s actually happening.
As of 1/27/2026, India and the EU have finalized a free trade agreement described by both sides as the “mother of all deals” that slashes tariffs, opens markets, and creates a combined economic region of roughly two billion people. This FTA stands as one of the most consequential global trade realignments in years, driven in part by U.S. tariff pressure and a shift in strategy toward diversifying one’s supply chains.
For whatever reason, if you missed the spectacle created by President Trump on the world stage recently in Davos, Switzerland at the World Economic Forum, you really need to pay close attention now to the fall out. Top business executives in global economies were watching and probably also wondering just who the hell was going to stand-up to the U.S. pressure campaign, and that’s where Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney stepped up to the mic and delivered a speech that sent shockwaves across continents.
On any given morning so far in 2026, looking around the globe, one could easily surmise that chaos rules, and the world of trade as result is on fire. The global landscape is filled with trade barriers, tariffs, sanctions, and export controls, from microchips and dairy to lumber, steel and aluminum. We have seen where geopolitical disputes often escalate into trade wars, where countries impose tariffs or targeted restrictions on each other’s goods, but an actual invasion, that’s on a totally different level regarding how it affects trade and global economies.
The exit of a country, such as the U.S., from the USMCA, well, that’s just crazy, right? Afterall, it’s a powerhouse of a trade agreement between the three nations. According to the U.S. International Trade Administration, the United States conducts over $1.3 trillion in annual trade with Mexico and Canada under the USMCA framework and supports roughly 17 million jobs across North America.
The legality of the Fentanyl IEEPA tariffs and the Reciprocal IEEPA tariffs is currently pending in the Supreme Court. A decision is expected in January, although it could come sooner, though the Court may not directly address refund mechanics. Instead, it could remand the issue to the Court of International Trade (CIT), which would delay guidance for several months.
Could BRICS break the dollar’s grip? The answer is coming into sharper focus, and it’s more complicated than either the optimists or skeptics predicted. Since our previous analysis, BRICS has made concrete moves toward de-dollarization while simultaneously confronting harsh economic and political realities. The gap between ambition and achievement has never been clearer.
In the Chinese zodiac calendar, 2025 is the year of the snake. The snake is said to represent wisdom and strategy. As it occasionally sheds its skin, it is also said to represent a change or an inflection point. Whether American trade policy in the year of the snake exemplifies wisdom and strategy depends on one’s political perspective. Whether it exemplifies a major transformation and inflection point is unquestionable.
On November 14, 2025, President Trump issued an Executive Order exempting certain agricultural products from the reciprocal tariffs. The exemptions for certain agricultural products went into effect on November 13, 2025.
The new DHS/DOJ Trade Fraud Resource Guide should resonate across the trade ecosystem, especially for importers, Customs brokers, and in-house counsel.
The war with Iran is being fought with missiles, aircraft and naval forces, but some of its most consequential effects are disruptions impacting energy markets, international shipping, insurance, supply chains, and prices, while adding another layer of sanctions and tariff risk to international trade. The result is particularly significant because the Strait of Hormuz, at the center of the conflict, is one of the most important arteries in world commerce.
A municipal government’s use of emergency powers might seem inconsequential, but it contributes to many communities’ accumulation of debt, housing and commercial space that is affordable to hypothetical residents but not actual ones, surveillance cameras, empty offices and strip malls, and contractual commitments to data centers and private prisons – all without any meaningful public involvement.
There are about 200 straits worldwide, but only 18–20 of them actually matter for global trade, and 9 are considered truly critical choke points. So, these are the straits/canals where closure would cause (and is currently causing) massive global economic shock: Strait of Malacca, Strait of Hormuz, Suez Canal, Panama Canal, Bab elMandeb, Strait of Gibraltar, Bosphorus Strait, Danish Straits, and of course, the ever-impending blockage of the Taiwan Strait.
A sweeping new White House Executive Order is set to once again shake up global supply chains by requiring a historic overhaul of the U.S. Importer of Record (IOR) framework. It lays out raising penalty floors, and tightening disclosure rules for everyone bringing goods into the United States, among other things.
“Origin Engineering” refers to modifying the sourcing of essential product inputs or relocating key manufacturing processes from countries subject to higher tariff rates to jurisdictions with more favorable trade treatment. It is one of the most effective tools available to importers navigating elevated tariff exposure.
Mexico’s customs and foreign trade legal framework has evolved toward a stricter and more controlled compliance model.
On June 3, 2026, President Trump issued Executive Order 14411, “Strengthening Customs Enforcement,” directing the Department of Homeland Security and U.S. Customs and Border Protection to tighten importer eligibility, increase disclosure obligations, and expand enforcement measures across the U.S. import system.
Yes, regarding this particular topic I am immediately surrounded by all of those external voices, even internal, telling me of how ridiculous it would be for the US to follow through and pull out of the USMCA. My response of course is noting that I probably wouldn’t have given the topic a second thought had the President of the United States not mentioned that this was a consideration regarding the upcoming July 2026 USMCA review.
On June 15, 2026, the U.S. Supreme Court denied a petition for a writ of certiorari in the case of HMTX Industries LLC v. United States. The petition came in response to the Federal Circuit’s decision to uphold use of tariffs against China under Lists 3 and 4A of Section 301 during the first Trump Administration.