On April 2, 2025, the United States stunned the global trading system by announcing sweeping “reciprocal tariffs” on all trading partners. The impact was felt most acutely in Asia, where several export-oriented economies faced some of the steepest tariff hikes. While many commentators were quick to denounce the so-called “Liberation Day tariffs,” much of the early reaction overlooked the deeper strategic logic underpinning the policy.
Over the past year, however, Professor Henry Gao has stood out as one of the few analysts who not only identified the strategic intent behind these tariffs from the outset, but also anticipated the trajectory of subsequent bilateral negotiations and the substantive content of the resulting agreements. As events have unfolded, his analysis has proven notably prescient—effectively mapping the direction of policy missed by most observers.
In this seminar, Professor Gao will revisit the Liberation Day tariffs one year on, unpacking both their original rationale and their real-world consequences. Drawing on his recent work in the American Journal of International Law and the World Trade Review, he will examine the political-economic logic driving the policy, analyze responses from key actors, especially China, and explore how the emerging bilateral deals are reshaping global trade governance in ways that remain under-appreciated.
Suggested Readings:
Gao, Henry. The Art of a Trade Deal: How Trump’s reciprocal tariff agreements can reset the global trade agenda, Commonplace, (2025), https://commonplace.org/2025/04/16/the-art-of-a-trade-deal/.
Gao, Henry. “From Great ‘Liberator’ to ‘Landlord Seeking Rent’: The Implications of U.S. Reciprocal Tariffs Policy in Asia and Beyond.” American Journal of International Law 119, no. 4 (2025): 711–23. https://doi.org/10.1017/ajil.2025.10111
Gao, Henry, and Weihuan Zhou. “(When) Can Trade Wars Be Good?” World Trade Review 24, no. 4 (2025): 515–19. https://doi.org/10.1017/S1474745625100980.
Gao, Henry. "Decoding Trump’s Economic Security Agreements: It’s All About China", Law & Geoeconomics (published online ahead of print 2026), doi: https://doi.org/10.1163/29505720-bja00015
This session is part of the SMU Law Academy “Recent Highlights” series. Designed with the busy practitioner in mind, this series provides participants with a convenient platform to obtain timely and practical bite-sized analysis of the latest developments in various areas of the law. The series will be taught by leading and experienced experts curated from academia and practice. Each topic in the series is distilled into a short-duration online webinar so that busy legal professionals can be effectively updated with the most material developments affecting their practice.
SPEAKER
Henry Gao is Professor of Law at Singapore Management University and Senior Fellow at CIGI. With law degrees from three continents, he started his career as the first Chinese lawyer at the WTO Secretariat. He has been an advisor on trade issues for many national governments as well as the WTO, UN, World Bank, ADB, APEC, ASEAN and the World Economic Forum. Widely published on China and WTO and digital trade issues, he sits on the Advisory Board of the WTO Chairs Program and the Executive Council of the American Society of International Law, as well as the editorial boards of American Journal of International Law and Journal of International Economic Law.
FEES
| a. | Registration Fee
Registration fee of S$163.50* (inclusive of GST) applies |
| b. | Group Registration
Registration fee of S$147.15* (inclusive of GST) applies |
| c. | SMU Alumni (LLB / JD / LLM graduates)
Registration fee of S$147.15* (inclusive of GST) applies |
| | * Please note that there will be no refund of any fees should the participant cancel the registration/ fail to attend the event. However, registration is transferable. Notice of any change in participant should be sent to the Academy via email by 5 August 2026. SMU Law Academy reserves the right to cancel or postpone any event. In such case, we will arrange for the refund of fees paid. |
