The Weekly Current

General / Compliance

Over the past week, the White House has made significant progress in advancing international trade negotiations, particularly with Japan and the Philippines, where agreements are close to being finalized. Encouraging developments have also been reported in discussions with Indonesia and the EU, suggesting a positive trajectory for these partnerships.

However, with the pivotal month of August fast approaching, two major trade deals—with India and Canada—remain unresolved, and their final outcomes are still uncertain.

In parallel, the baseline tariff—originally set at 10% in April—has now been revised to 15%, establishing a new benchmark for all forthcoming trade negotiations.

Meanwhile, consumer prices have continued to rise over the past three months, driven by persistent uncertainty in the trade environment. Economists anticipate this upward trend will continue until the new trade agreements are finalized and implemented, bringing greater stability to markets and relief for consumers.