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Companies have had to find ways to absorb the new expense by passing it along to customers in the form of higher prices, employing fewer workers or accepting lower profits.

The goods and services trade gap expanded from the prior month to $70.3 billion. The shortfall culminated in a full-year deficit of $901.5 billion, still one of the largest in data back to 1960.

National Economic Council Director Kevin Hassett said a study from the Federal Reserve Bank of New York showing U.S. companies bear most of the tariff burden “is an embarrassment.” 

The U.S. and Japan unveiled the debut projects of a $550 billion investment fund, pressing ahead with a trade and economic pact in the weeks before Japan’s Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi is set to meet President Donald Trump.

Total container traffic through the Port of Los Angeles dropped 12% in January as exports and imports weakened from a year earlier, when shippers rushed to move freight in anticipation of tariffs.

U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer signaled that the Trump administration is open to changing its tariffs on steel and aluminum amid pressure from business groups and trading partners.

Janice Charette will work with the minister responsible for Canada-U.S. trade, Dominic LeBlanc, on the joint review of the trade agreement between Canada, the U.S. and Mexico.

President Trump introduced 25% tariffs on U.S. imports of medium- and heavy-duty trucks and parts on Nov. 1 as he seeks to reorient trade flows, although the full details are yet to emerge.

The rollback plans were reported earlier by the Financial Times. Aluminum and other metals fell following the report, while shares of U.S. steelmakers and aluminum producers sank.

The agreement comes as the U.S. remains reliant on Taiwan for its production of computer chips, the exporting of which contributed to a trade imbalance of nearly $127 billion during 2025.