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Trade Barriers

Trade Barriers

RAND's research and analysis on trade barriers investigates the economic and policy impacts of tariffs, quotas, and other restrictions on international commerce. Studies provide actionable recommendations to reduce barriers, enhance market access, and promote more efficient global trade.

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Expert Insights

Apr 24, 2026

When Economic Security Meets Economic Statecraft: Principles for a New Era

Economic security policy and economic statecraft—once parallel domains—are now colliding. The authors trace this collision through five phases of U.S. policy since 2001 and propose four principles to guide policymakers in this new era.
Expert Insights

Mar 18, 2026

Proposing New Metrics for Economic Security Policy: A Worker Return-on-Investment Scorecard

This paper offers a new way to study how tools of economic statecraft — such as sanctions and export controls — affect U.S. workers. The proposed scorecard would help policymakers ensure that workers are not sidelined in economic security decisions.
Commentary

Aug 15, 2025

America Should Rent, Not Sell, AI Chips to China

Selling AI chips to China outright reduces America's AI lead for little benefit. Rather than exporting world-class AI chips, the United States could rent them out.
Commentary

Aug 7, 2025

Russia's Use of Crypto Schemes

Russia is increasingly reliant on cryptocurrency to sustain international trade and circumvent sanctions. Western allies should understand, map, and develop appropriate countermeasures to the crypto schemes that allow Russia to hide its trading activity and fund its hostile activities abroad.
Commentary

Feb 24, 2025

What DeepSeek Means for AI Competition: The Beginning of the End or the End of the Beginning

While current U.S. policies have not succeeded in stopping Chinese AI firms from being peer competitors with American firms, the competition for AI is far from over. There are some lessons that can be learned that may help shape U.S. policy and advance U.S. interests in AI competition with China.
Research

Feb 20, 2025

Examining the Feasibility of an East-West Economic Corridor for South and Central Asia: Views from India and Pakistan

The authors, after analyzing literature and interviews with policy experts from India and Pakistan, discuss the feasibility of a land-based East-West Economic Corridor connecting Afghanistan, India, Iran, Pakistan, and the Central Asian republics.
Commentary

Jan 28, 2025

The Rise of DeepSeek: What the Headlines Miss

While DeepSeek's AI achievements deserve recognition and carry policy implications, the story of compute access, export controls, and AI development is more complex than many reports suggest. Here are some key points that deserve more attention.
Research

Oct 22, 2024

The Effectiveness of U.S. Economic Policies Regarding China Pursued from 2017 to 2024

Despite fluctuations, U.S.-China trade tensions have been high since 2017. In this report, the authors assess recent U.S. economic policy toward China and recommend adjustments to help defend U.S. economic interests and boost fair trade practices.
Commentary

Mar 7, 2023

Consequences of the War in Ukraine: The Economic Fallout

Before Russia invaded Ukraine, projections estimated global economic growth in 2022 would be around 5 percent. But the war in Ukraine contributed to slowed economic growth in 2022 and a slowed recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic. What are the broader consequences for the global economy?
Commentary

Nov 28, 2022

Export Controls Give ASML and the Netherlands an Opportunity to Lead by Example. Will They Take It?

Dutch tech company ASML makes the complex machines required to construct advanced microchips, and it sells many of these machines to China. Harmonization of export controls between the United States and the Netherlands could limit China's development of military technologies and its human rights abuses.
Commentary

Nov 22, 2022

Russian Aircraft Keep Crashing. Could Sanctions Be the Cause?

At least six fixed-wing Russian aircraft have crashed over Russian-controlled airspace since September. Sanctions placed on Russia by the West could well be affecting Russia's ability to manufacture and maintain parts needed to keep aircraft safe.
Commentary

Oct 20, 2022

Russia's Su-35: Are Its Military Aircraft Exports Headed for a Fall?

Squeezed by sanctions and pressed to replace equipment destroyed in Ukraine, Russia's aerospace sector isn't likely to have combat aircraft to sell, even if it wants to. If purchasing countries start to change their minds and invest in drones and other less-expensive precision guided munitions, the market for Russian combat aircraft might start to rapidly decline.

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