Trump Administration Tallies Trade Barriers That Could Prompt Tariffs

President Trump is set to announce on Wednesday global tariffs that he says will combat unfair trade treatment by other countries and make sure American exporters remain competitive.

On Monday, the Office of the United States Trade Representative released a wide-ranging report on foreign trade barriers that could hint at some of the trade battles the Trump administration aims to fight.

In an annual report, the office listed the most important barriers to U.S. exports in dozens of countries. Those obstacles included tariffs, but also laws, regulations and policies that the administration said undermine competition. Here are eight of the most consequential trading partners for the United States that could be targeted in the president’s tariff announcements this week.

China

The report dedicated almost 50 of its nearly 400 pages to China, which has long been a subject of trade criticism for American officials and companies.

The report criticized China as using industrial planning and other policies to support certain sectors it had targeted for “domination,” such as robotics, aerospace, new energy vehicles and biopharmaceuticals. The trade representative’s office argued that those tools sometimes worked by discriminating against or taking advantage of foreign enterprises, and that the program had allowed Chinese firms to win market share at the expense of foreign competitors.

The office also pointed out that China had not followed through in rolling out provisions of the trade deal signed with Mr. Trump in his first term, including commitments to open up its agricultural market and protect U.S. intellectual property. Trade data also shows that China fell far short of commitments it made to purchase U.S. goods and services in 2020 and 2021, the report said.

The United States also criticized China for strongly restricting the transfer of data outside the country, making it difficult for international businesses to operate across borders. The country has erected barriers to U.S. service exports, like cloud computing, film production, internet services, express delivery and legal services, the report said. It also highlighted China’s increasing use of export controls and other restrictions to target the supply chains of the United States and its allies.

Canada

For Canada, the trade representative focused on “supply-management systems” used to regulate the country’s dairy, chicken, turkey and egg industries. The systems create production quotas, set prices and supply and control the amount of imports of those products. The report said that the system “severely limits the ability of U.S. producers to increase exports to Canada.”

U.S. access to those markets was expanded through the United States-Canada-Mexico Agreement, a trade deal Mr. Trump negotiated in his first term, but the countries have continued to spar over the dairy sector in particular.

The United States also criticized Canada’s digital service tax, which imposes a 3 percent fee on revenues from online marketplaces, online advertising and social media platforms. The United States says that most digital service taxes have been designed in ways to discriminate against American companies, which are dominant in those sectors.

European Union

The trade representative noted that the United States and the countries making up the European Union shared the largest economic relationship in the world, but argued that U.S. goods and services had nonetheless faced persistent barriers in Europe. Some of those barriers have persisted despite repeated bilateral talks or efforts to settle them at the World Trade Organization, it said.

The United States’ complaints about the European Union included criticism about regulations, including requirements that ban certain chemicals or pesticides that kill pollinators. The trade representative argued that many E.U. restrictions on food unnecessarily restrict trade without furthering safety objectives, or were not based on scientific evidence. Those rules, the office said, include various measures that ban genetically engineered crops or meat produced using hormones or other compounds that promote growth in animals that are commonly used in the U.S.

The United States criticized a proposed regulation that would combat deforestation by requiring makers of cocoa, beef, palm oil and other products to trace where their goods come from. It also cited Europe’s carbon border adjustment mechanism, which beginning in 2026 will tax certain imports based on the carbon emissions generated as they are produced.

The report also said that Europe had harmful tech policies, including its efforts to regulate how content is shared online, restrict personal data from being transferred outside Europe, or regulate the practices of large tech companies, most of which are American.

India

The U.S.T.R. report cited India’s tariffs on foreign products, which are the highest of any major world economy, including levies of 50 percent on apples, corn and motorcycles, and a 100 percent tariff on coffee, raisins and walnuts.

The United States also criticized India as having put up various other barriers to American business in the country. Those include requiring certain licenses or other approvals; imposing quotas; having “onerous requirements” for dairy products; placing price caps on medical devices; creating an unlevel playing field for banks; insurers and other businesses; and prohibiting the import of ethanol. India also provides a broad range of subsidies to its farmers and other sectors that distort the market, the office complained.

Japan

Japan has low average tariff rates and is the fourth-largest market by country for U.S. agricultural products. Still, the trade representative said that Japan had put up barriers to U.S. products at the border, affecting fish, seafood, leather, footwear, rice, potatoes and pork.

The United States has also expressed strong concerns about a lack of access to Japan’s auto markets, saying that issues with having vehicles certified and tested, among other problems, block American-made cars from that market.

Mexico

U.S.T.R. cited Mexico for a variety of regulations that can change on short notice, making it difficult for U.S. exports to follow and predict rules. It also mentioned Mexico’s backlog in allowing pharmaceuticals and medical devices to enter the market, and barriers for products made with herbicides and genetically engineered materials, including the use of genetically engineered corns in tortillas.

It criticized Mexico for issues with online piracy. And it said the country had set up systems that gave preference to its state-owned oil and gas company over private energy companies, gave the government greater state control over lithium resources, and restricted foreign investment in sectors like ports and express delivery companies.

South Korea

Seoul has eliminated tariffs on many U.S. agricultural products through a free-trade agreement, but still has restrictions on U.S. beef, pet food, blueberries and other goods. U.S.T.R. also criticized barriers to foreign cloud service providers, and bills that South Korea had introduced to regulate companies in the digital sector. It said that the country had maintained barriers to foreign investment and said that the auto industry had expressed concerns about requirements like certification for emissions standards.

Vietnam

The report criticizes Vietnam for prohibiting the import of certain products like toys, used vehicle parts and refurbished medical devices. It also cited Vietnam’s restrictions on imported pharmaceuticals, medical devices, ethanol and genetically engineered corn and soybeans, as well as the country’s restrictions on data and its barriers to investment.