US Against MFN

[ABS News Service/03.10.2026]

The US-hosted G20 trade ministers meeting in Milwaukee ended with an impasse on an agreement to counter excess industrial capacity.

The United States had hoped the two-day meeting would produce a ministers’ statement on excess capacity, but countries failed to find a consensus.

“Nearly all countries agreed that this is an issue that requires action,” US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer told reporters. “And nearly all countries agreed that our current system of trade remedies or responses is inadequate to solve this problem.”

The trade ministers did agree to denounce the weaponization of food through coercive trade actions, but failed to reach consensus on statements denouncing forced labor in supply chains. Mr. Greer said he did expect a smaller group of countries would issue a statement on forced labor.

The trade officials also considered a US proposal to reform the most favored nation system – something that the United States has been pushing at the World Trade Organization.

However, Washington did not propose that ministers agree to a statement on MFN, because it is a fairly new issue.

“So for us, we think that the principle of unconditional Most Favored Nation (tariffs) warrants reform,” Mr. Greer said. “We think that it actually fails to promote reciprocity and balance in the trading system. It can actually create free riders.”