Many members of the international community are alarmed, fearing extremely negative consequences from the introduction of US tariffs. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, Director-General of the World Trade Organization (WTO), has echoed these concerns. She believes that in 2026, global trade may face significant problems caused by tariffs introduced by US President Donald Trump. There will also be a need to deal with the consequences of these measures.
According to the WTO chief, negative effects from increased US import tariffs are inevitable for most countries. Okonjo-Iweala asserts that the world will face these consequences next year.
The sharp tightening of US customs policy will have a substantial impact on global trade in 2025, she added. Okonjo-Iweala emphasized that this situation results from the impact of advance purchases made from January to June 2025, before the introduction of import tariffs by the White House administration.
Going forward, the global economy will increasingly feel the negative impact of American tariffs. Once inventories of goods are depleted, global trade may suffer a sharp downturn due to the strict US customs policy. “This will become noticeable next year,” the WTO head added.
After the introduction of higher tariffs, many countries have approached the WTO with complaints against the tough US customs strategy. Such complaints have mainly come from China and Canada, whose producers have encountered difficulties due to unusually high tariffs. Following these complaints, Donald Trump postponed the imposition of higher tariffs on China for 90 days, until November 10, 2025. However, if the parties fail to reach a compromise and cannot conclude a trade deal, Washington is expected to immediately implement strict tariffs on Chinese goods, experts summarize.
