IP Law Daily, VITAL BRIEFING—Trump pivots back to tariffs; new levies tied to Iran, semiconductors, (Jan 16, 2026)
By imposing a 25 percent tariff on goods imported from all countries that do business with Iran, President Trump may well reignite last year’s trade war with the Chinese, given that China is Iran’s largest trading partner.
After slowing down on tariff activity at the end of 2025, the Trump administration appears ready, willing, (and able …at least for now), to step down on the tariff gas pedal with gusto. In this edition of Tariffs Insights, Thomas Thompson looks at how the president’s potential pivot back to a more vigorous tariff agenda may impact the international trade environment, especially with respect to U.S.-China relations, soybeans, and advanced computing chips. Some of the matters Thompson explores include:
How the sanctions seem targeted to pressure up to 100 of Iran’s current trading partners to further isolate Iran because of its ongoing crackdown on dissidents.
The new tariffs creating new trade troubles with China that lead to exacerbating the president’s political problems with U.S. farmers who were hit hard last year when China stopped buying soybeans from them.
China’s progress towards fulfilling its commitment to purchase 12 million metric tons of U.S. soybeans by the end of February as it agreed to during talks with President Trump in October of last year, an essential component of the current trade truce with the U.S.
The imposition of 25 percent tariffs on a few important types of advanced chips demonstrates the high priority the administration is placing on incentivizing more investment in the U.S.
To read the article, click Trump pivots back to tariffs; new levies tied to Iran, semiconductors.
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