An overview of the U.S. foreign trade policies under the presidency of Joe Biden
Published: July 29, 2026
Abstract
In his previous term with the America First policy, the administration of U.S. President Donald Trump seemed to have abandoned global leadership on almost every front, especially in international economic relations. In January 2021, U.S. President Joe Biden took office, pledging to “repair our alliances and engage with the world once again." In international economic relations, this could be understood as returning support for the WTO, removing barriers to international trade, and restoring the rules-based multilateral trading system. However, U.S. President Joe Biden and his administration have failed to do this, as economic and political constraints remain unshakable obstacles to the demands for changes in the U.S. international trade policy. This paper analyzed some of the Biden administration's key trade policies on tariffs, free trade agreements, and U.S.-China trade. It also expects the Biden administration to implement important new initiatives to support the multilateral trading system and international trade law, to benefit both the U.S. and the world.
Keywords
the U.S. trade policyU.S. President Joe Biden
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