US Trade Representative Exposes 10 Dirty Tricks Used by Foreign Governments to Sabotage U.S. Exports
The Office of the United States Trade Representative (USTR) has dropped a bombshell with its 2025 National Trade Estimate Report on Foreign Trade Barriers, shining a glaring spotlight on the dirty tricks foreign nations are using to kneecap American exporters.
The USTR, under the steady hand of Trump-appointee Ambassador Jamieson Greer, has laid bare 10 egregious practices that prove the world isn’t playing fair—and it’s high time America stops rolling over.
For too long, the Biden administration and its predecessors have let foreign governments run roughshod over our farmers, manufacturers, and tech innovators, all while preaching the gospel of “free trade,” but not under Trump’s administration.
On April 2, 2025, Wednesday, President Donald Trump declared “Liberation Day” during a ceremony in the White House Rose Garden, unveiling a series of sweeping tariffs aimed at reducing the United States’ reliance on foreign goods.
He announced a minimum baseline tariff of 10% on all imported goods, with higher “reciprocal” tariffs on nations that impose significant tariffs on U.S. exports.
Ambassador Jamieson Greer released the following statement backing President Donald Trump’s decision to invoke the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) to implement retaliatory tariffs in response to the national emergency caused by the lack of reciprocity in America’s bilateral trade deals:
“Today, President Trump is taking urgent action to protect the national security and economy of the United States. The current lack of trade reciprocity, demonstrated by our chronic trade deficit, has weakened our economic and national security.
After only 72 days in office, President Trump has prioritized swift action to bring reciprocity to our trade relations and reduce the trade deficit by leveling the playing field for American workers and manufacturers, reshoring American jobs, expanding our domestic manufacturing base, and ensuring our defense-industrial base is not dependent on foreign adversaries—all leading to stronger economic and national security.”
The NTE Report, released just days ago, confirms what patriots have been shouting from the rooftops: our so-called trading partners are rigging the game.
From Algeria to Vietnam, here are the 10 unfair trade practices the USTR is calling out:
1/10: China’s non-tariff measures and high tariffs on U.S. agricultural products—like soybeans, pork, wheat, and corn—have greatly restricted market access for American farmers. Removing these barriers would generate an estimated $6 billion in additional annual exports of these products.
2/10: The U.S. shrimp industry noted the negative impacts of subsidized low-cost, farm-raised shrimp imports from Brazil, China, Ecuador, India, Thailand, and Vietnam. According to NOAA Fisheries, the total value of U.S. shrimp fishermen’s catch fell from $522 million in 2021 to $268 million in 2023—an almost 50% decrease.
3/10: South Africa heavily restricts U.S. poultry exports through high tariffs, anti-dumping duties, and unjustified animal health restrictions. These barriers led to a 78% decline in exports, from $89 million in 2019 to $19 million in 2024.
4/10: Egypt’s average applied tariff on agricultural goods is 65.1%, 13 times higher than the U.S., and among the highest globally. Egypt has also raised WTO MFN tariffs on multiple products, disadvantaging U.S. goods while EU products enjoy preferential treatment under the EU-Egypt Free Trade Agreement.
5/10: The annual cost to the U.S. economy of counterfeit goods, pirated software, and trade secret theft is between $225 billion and $600 billion. In 2023, China accounted for 84% of the value of counterfeit and pirated goods seized by U.S. Customs and Border Protection, including via Hong Kong.
6/10: Argentina has banned U.S. live cattle imports since 2002 due to unfounded concerns over bovine spongiform encephalopathy. The result: a $223 million U.S. trade deficit with Argentina in beef and beef products.
7/10: Brazil has used baseless animal health concerns to delay U.S. pork imports. The U.S. agricultural trade deficit with Brazil reached $7.0 billion in 2024.
8/10: Brazil, Argentina, Ecuador, and Vietnam restrict or ban imports of remanufactured goods, limiting U.S. exporters and stifling sustainable trade. Removing these barriers could boost U.S. exports by at least $18 billion annually.
9/10: Illegal, unreported, and unregulated (IUU) fishing undercuts U.S. competitiveness and costs the global seafood industry up to $50 billion per year. China (with the world’s largest distant water fishing fleet) and Mexico face ongoing IUU violations and enforcement challenges under USMCA.
10/10: U.S. automakers encounter non-tariff barriers in Japan and South Korea that restrict market access. The U.S. auto industry loses an estimated $13.5 billion in annual exports to Japan and reduced import share in Korea due to these practices.
For more information on these unfair trade practices, see the 2025 National Trade Estimate Report: USTR 2025 National Trade Estimate Report
In honor of Liberation Day, USTR is spotlighting 10 unfair trade practices faced by American exporters.
1/10: China’s non-tariff measures and high tariffs on U.S. agricultural products, like soybeans, pork, wheat, and corn, have greatly restricted market access for American… pic.twitter.com/0GnVjE0cvz
— United States Trade Representative (@USTradeRep) April 2, 2025
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