Tariffs, trade agreements and rules of origin

• Most-favoured-nation (MFN) treatment: under WTO rules a country normally may not treat one trading partner worse than another, so its standard tariff applies to all members.
• Bound and applied rates: each WTO member "binds" a maximum rate for each product. The rate it actually applies can be lower than the bound rate.
• The main exceptions: free trade agreements, where members cut tariffs only for each other; special access for developing countries, such as the EU's Generalised Scheme of Preferences (GSP) and its Everything But Arms scheme for the least developed countries; and trade remedies, such as anti-dumping duties against goods judged to be sold unfairly.

United States

• On 20 February 2026 the US Supreme Court ruled against the broad tariffs imposed in 2025 under an emergency powers law (IEEPA). The same day the White House announced a temporary 10 percent import surcharge under section 122 of the Trade Act of 1974, which can last at most 150 days; it ran from 24 February to 24 July 2026.
• From 12:01 a.m. on 24 July 2026, new Section 301 tariffs apply to 60 economies, on top of normal duties. US Customs lists 10 percent for goods from India, Mexico, Indonesia, Malaysia and others, and 12.5 percent for goods from Vietnam, China, the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia and others. Goods from Mexico and Canada that enter duty free under the USMCA are exempt, and so are goods covered by Section 232 tariffs.
• Section 232 tariffs on steel and aluminium were raised to 50 percent in June 2025 and redrawn twice in 2026, in April and June, with different rates for raw metal and for products made of it. Always read the current proclamation for the exact product.
• The USMCA, the trade agreement between the US, Mexico and Canada, requires 75 percent North American content for cars and 40 to 45 percent made by workers earning at least USD 16 an hour. At the first joint review on 1 July 2026 the US did not agree to renew the agreement in its current form. Under the agreement's review clause (Article 34.7) that means a joint review every year; the agreement still runs to 2036, 16 years after it took effect, unless all three countries agree to extend it.

European Union

• The EU and India concluded a free trade agreement on 27 January 2026. India's tariffs on European cars are set to fall gradually from 110 percent to as low as 10 percent, and on wine from 150 to 75 percent at entry into force, later to as low as 20 percent. On 11 September 2026 the Commission sent it to the Council for signature; it still needs the European Parliament's consent and India's ratification before it takes effect.
• The EU-Mercosur interim trade agreement has applied provisionally since 1 May 2026 with Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay and Uruguay.
• The Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM) entered its definitive phase on 1 January 2026 for imports of cement, iron and steel, aluminium, fertilisers, electricity and hydrogen: importers will pay for the carbon emitted in making these goods.

India, ASEAN and the Gulf

• India and the UK: the trade agreement signed in July 2025 entered into force on 15 July 2026. The UK Government says whisky and gin tariffs in India are halved from 150 to 75 percent, falling to 40 percent by year ten, and 99 percent of Indian goods enter the UK duty free or at lower tariffs.
• India and EFTA (Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway and Switzerland): the Trade and Economic Partnership Agreement entered into force on 1 October 2025. India and the UAE: the CEPA has been in force since 1 May 2022.
• ASEAN: under the ASEAN Trade in Goods Agreement (ATIGA), the ASEAN Secretariat says tariffs on about 98.86 percent of products are fully eliminated. An upgrade was signed in October 2025 and enters into force when all members ratify it. The RCEP agreement (ASEAN plus Australia, China, Japan, Korea and New Zealand) has been in force since 1 January 2022 and covers about 30 percent of world GDP.
• The Gulf: the UAE's official portal gives tariffs of 0 to 5 percent, with most goods in Dubai paying 5 percent of CIF value. It notes that goods from other GCC countries are treated as local when at least 40 percent of their raw materials originate in the GCC, and that the UAE ranks third in the world for re-exports.