According to President Trump, “Tariff is the most beautiful word in the dictionary.” Throughout his presidential campaign, Trump promised to use tariffs as a central part of his foreign policy strategy. His America First Trade Policy memorandum also directs the administration to review various tariff- and tariff-adjacent levers the United States could use to further
UK imposes new Russia sanctions – mirroring of EU position on the maritime transport of LNG and refined petroleum products derived from Russian crude
Key takeaways
- Ban on the import of CN 2710 products derived from Russian crude and refined in third countries – subject to diesel and jet fuel exceptions.
- Prohibition on the maritime transportation of Russian LNG – subject to carve-outs for: (i) pre-existing long-term LNG contracts until 1 January 2027; and (ii) Sakhalin and Yamal 2
UK issues General Trade Licence for import of diesel and jet fuel derived from Russian crude oil
On 19 May 2026, the Department for Business and Trade (DBT) issued General Trade Licence GBSAN0004 (the Licence), authorising the import into the United Kingdom of certain processed oil products derived from Russian crude oil. The Licence, which comes into force on 20 May 2026, marks a notable relaxation of the UK’s otherwise comprehensive sanctions
New Draft EC Merger Guidelines – Learnings & Implications
The European Commission (EC) has published a draft of its long-awaited revision of the Merger Guidelines (Draft Guidelines), combining the 2004 Horizontal Merger Guidelines and 2008 Non-Horizontal Merger Guidelines into a single document that is organized around different theories of harm and endeavors to achieve five principal objectives: (1) to take account of the Draghi
Antitrust Review Episode 64: The EC’s Draft Merger Guidelines
In the latest episode of Cleary Gottlieb’s Antitrust Review podcast, host Nick Levy is joined by a panel of experts to discuss the EC’s draft Merger Guidelines. Sir Philip Lowe, Sir Jonathan Faull, Barbara Moens, Jorge Padilla, Ethel Fonseca, Kirsten Edwards-Warren, Enrique González-Díaz, Anita Magraner Oliver, and Chris Cook discuss a wide array of topics,
EC Publishes 2025 Competition Policy Report
On May 5, 2026, the European Commission (the Commission) published its 2025 Report on Competition Policy (the Report). The Report highlights initiatives undertaken during Commissioner Ribera’s first year in office and provides an indication of the direction of enforcement in the coming years. Six takeaways may be identified:
National security meets the farm bill: Key provisions in the Farm, Food, and National Security Act of 2026
On April 30, 2026, the U.S. House of Representatives passed the Farm, Food, and National Security Act of 2026 (H.R. 7567). The legislation extends agricultural programs through 2031 and contains significant national security elements, beyond the headline coverage of food stamp cuts and pesticide liability changes. Notably, the bill does not impose a sweeping ban
EU Deforestation Regulation simplification and clarification on scope for online sales – key takeaways for platform operators and e-commerce businesses
On 4 May 2026, the European Commission published what is expected to be the final simplification package for the EU Deforestation Regulation (EUDR), before it starts to apply on 30 December 2026 for most companies. The EUDR requires that seven key commodities (cattle, wood, cocoa, soy, palm oil, coffee, and rubber) and their derived products
Antitrust Review Episode 63: In Conversation With Sarah Cardell
In the latest instalment of Cleary Gottlieb’s Antitrust Review podcast, host Nick Levy is joined by Sarah Cardell, Chief Executive of the Competition and Markets Authority. Their conversation covers a wide array of topics, including the objectives of competition law, the UK Government’s strategic steer, merger control, antitrust enforcement, consumer protection, digital regulation, and much
EC Announces Wide-Ranging Reform of Merger Guidelines
Principal Changes and Implications
The European Commission today published a draft of its long-awaited revision of the Merger Guidelines, combining the 2004 Horizontal Merger Guidelines and the 2008 Non-Horizontal Merger Guidelines into a single document that takes account of the Draghi Report’s call for more dynamic, forward-looking merger control, acknowledges the benefits of scale, resilience,