Weaponizing Uncertainty: Trade Policy under the Trump Administration

The Trump Administration is deploying uncertainty as a new weapon in trade protection, according to an analysis published by the C.D. Howe Institute. In “Weaponizing Uncertainty” authors Meredith Crowley and Dan Ciuriak show that uncertainty acts like a non-tariff barrier that impedes trade and investment. Importantly, unlike actual tariffs, uncertainty is only indirectly observed and not subject to the disciplines of World Trade Organization agreements or bilateral or regional free trade agreements.