{
  "id": 10625843,
  "title": "How Central America Is Winning the US Trade War",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/29/how-central-america-is-winning-the-us-trade-war",
  "topic": "world",
  "section": "World",
  "published": "2026-09-29T06:00:00.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Global Finance",
    "slug": "global-finance",
    "url": "https://gfmag.com/features/how-central-america-is-winning-us-trade-war/"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "Central America is reaping significant benefits from the evolving U.S. trade landscape, defying expectations in the ongoing global trade war. The region's garment industry now enjoys a substantial duty advantage over Asian competitors, thanks to a series of exemptions carved out of successive U.S. tariff impositions. Sugar exports from the area also benefit from a more favorable U.S. market, where Brazilian competitors face a 25% tariff. Some farm exports enter duty-free, marking a stark contrast to the blanket 10% duties imposed just a year ago. Relief arrived gradually, with each tariff regime expanding the region's exemptions. Last November, the U.S. restored duty-free treatment for certain apparel and exempted 237 agricultural product categories, including coffee and bananas. The U.S. Supreme Court's recent ruling and the implementation of new Section 301 tariffs have further bolstered Central America's competitive edge. Despite an average apparel duty of 16.5%, qualifying CAFTA-DR textiles and apparel are exempt from these tariffs, along with the Section 301 tariffs. This leaves Central American apparel with a tariff advantage of around 25 to 35 percentage points over Asian rivals.",
  "summary": "A succession of tariff exemptions has handed the region a windfall trade advantage over its Asian rivals. The post How Central America Is Winning the US Trade War appeared first on Global Finance Magazine .",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}