It was fantastic to see so many of you at the NAFTZ Annual Conference in Kansas City.  There was a lot of conversation about our current tariff environment, and our place in it. 

As highlighted in several sessions at the conference, 2025 has certainly been a challenge for many of us that have spent years in the trade compliance profession.  There is an evolution happening in the U.S. economy, global trade, and the role of a trade compliance professional.

A foundational part of the current U.S. economic strategy is the use of tariffs as a tool to enhance U.S. exports and to encourage the reshoring and increased sourcing from domestic suppliers.  The current U.S. administration feels as though other countries have solved their economic problems by harming the U.S. and other countries through tariff measures, low labor standards and wages, subsidies, and currency manipulation.  Tariffs on U.S. imports are seen by the administration as a tool to address this inequity.

At the same time, this administration sees the U.S. as lacking in critical manufacturing capabilities, particularly in the area of industrial capacity.  Tariffs are also seen as a tool to raise the cost of importing to a level that will encouraging U.S. companies to either expand into additional manufacturing capacity or to find domestic sources of products.  The administration has told NAFTZ directly that they do not want anyone or any program to be allowed to circumvent their economic policy and strategies. 

The U.S. FTZ program has existed for almost a century. In that time, there were many economic pivots.  The program has adapted to be an effective tool for U.S. companies to compete globally throughout all the changes of the trade environment.  We will manage this evolution in our jobs, and in the U.S.’s place in global trade together, too.

NAFTZ is evolving to meet your needs.  As an association, our job is to promote, educate and advocate for the U.S. FTZ program. If you need other resources to help tell your U.S. FTZ story, contact Melissa, at mirmen@naftz.org.