Page 10 - Policy Economic Report - December 2025

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Recent bilateral deals involve significant concessions to the US. In October, Cambodia, Malaysia, Thailand,
and Viet Nam all pledged to address non-tariff barriers and strengthen intellectual property standards, as
well as labor and environmental standards.

Thailand and Viet Nam committed to purchasing more US commodities, while Malaysia agreed to provide
preferential market access for certain US agricultural goods. Cambodia and Thailand also agreed to
eliminate digital services taxes on US firms, and Viet Nam is finalizing commitments on digital trade
facilitation.

The PRC suspended some retaliatory measures, notably export controls on rare earths and critical
minerals, and it committed to purchase more US agricultural goods, including sorghum and soybeans, and
ramp up efforts to curb fentanyl flows. While some of these measures are not finalized, they highlight a
widening of concessions obtained by the US.

4. Global trade has proved resilient amid rising protectionism and geopolitical tension- World
Bank

A decade-long accumulation of restrictions has been supercharged by sharp tariff hikes and retaliatory
measures among major economies in recent months. As a result, both tariffs and uncertainty remain far
above historical norms. According to Global Trade Alert, the number of new trade restrictions reached
record highs during 2023–25, reversing decades of gradual liberalisation.

In the first ten months of 2025 alone, more than 2,500 trade restrictions were imposed worldwide —
almost five times as many as during the same period in 2015. Although some of these measures have
since been rolled back and new negotiations are underway, businesses continue to navigate marked by
heightened policy uncertainty, stretched supply chains, and the threat of additional barriers. Global trade
policy uncertainty so far in the 2020s has averaged nearly five times the level of the 2000s.

Figure 5: Trade-distorting policy measures

Source- World Bank Page | 9

November 2025