Late Wednesday night (Thursday morning in Korea), President Trump and President Xi greeted each other on the sidelines of the APEC Summit for their long anticipated in-person trade meeting. The working meeting lasted 90 minutes and concluded with both leaders signing off on a one-year trade agreement. The details of the agreement were negotiated in […]

With President Trump and President Xi set to meet this Thursday, October 30, at APEC in South Korea we are nearing the next major inflection point of global trade negotiations following “Liberation Day,” and the follow-on August 1 reciprocal trade deadline. Notably, this will be Trump’s and Xi’s first in-person meeting since the 2019 G20 […]

As Congress enters week four of the government shutdown, neither side is budging. The House, which passed a clean continuing resolution funding the government through November 21, remains out of session subject to being called back to DC on 48 hours’ notice. The Senate has been in session each week but remains unable to move ahead […]

The CCP’s export restriction escalation on lithium batteries, medium and heavy rare earth elements, superhard materials, rare earth equipment, and rare earth-related technologies, and retaliatory actions designed to mirror the United States’ Section 301 shipping fees* (commencing on October 14), have created a flurry of advanced technology geopolitical activity today. The CCP’s enhanced export restrictions […]

Day 2 of the shutdown is underway with no agreement in sight to reopen the government. We expect the Trump Administration to take additional steps today to increase pressure on Democrats, including possible RIF announcements and other agency actions. Below are several resources for your use: Possible Reduction in Force (RIF) action: President Trump will […]

Understanding Sector Specific Tariffs In evaluating various sector-specific tariffs and related Administrative actions, it’s important to view each through the lens of President Trump’s America First Trade Policy. From a macro perspective, the President’s trade agenda and overall goals derive from four primary policy areas: Reciprocity (access/revenue) Domestic production (jobs/supply chains) Consumer costs (investment/pricing) Geopolitical […]

Good evening: with less than four hours left until a government shutdown begins, we are sharing two documents issued by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) this evening: The first is a “go ahead” memo from Director Russ Vought directing agency heads to begin executing their shutdown contingency plans. The second is a Frequently […]

With just two days to go until September 30, a government shutdown remains highly likely. While tomorrow’s meeting at the White House with the “Big Four” Congressional leaders could yield a surprise, we view the odds of any last-minute breakthrough as low, with both sides entrenching further into their respective positions over the weekend. As […]

Last week, the House passed its version of the FY26 annual National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), a yearly national security policy package that has been signed into law every year for over the past five decades. While there were provisions on China, supply chains, and AI in the base text that the House Armed Services […]

Welcome back. As summer turns to fall, Washington returns to a heavy slate of legislative tasks amidst a growing backdrop of intra-party and intra-branch showdowns. While the annual September 30 government funding deadline looms large, Congress will also grapple with potential changes to Senate rules for nominations and floor consideration of the FY 2026 National […]