Trade

We help businesses trade across borders by shaping policy, setting standards and developing practical tools that make international trade simpler, more efficient and more predictable.

Trade is a powerful driver of prosperity. 

It enables businesses, economies and communities to grow, compete and innovate. 

But realising this potential depends on a trading system that provides the predictability business needs, with rules modernised for the way companies operate today. 

That is where ICC leads. As the institutional voice of more than 45 million businesses across over 170 countries, ICC brings real-world business expertise into global trade discussions and decision-making. 

We set trade standards, advance trade solutions and engage governments and international organisations to help shape the frameworks that enable businesses of all sizes to operate, invest and grow across borders.

Trade areas we cover 

Multilateral trade 

ICC advances practical solutions to support a more open, predictable and effective global trading system. We advocate for reforms that make trade rules more responsive to business needs, including through open and inclusive approaches to cooperation that can build confidence and reduce fragmentation. 

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Trade finance 

Together with banks and companies, ICC develops and maintains globally recognised standards and rules that bring consistency and trust to trade finance practices.

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Customs and trade facilitation 

Efficient customs procedures are essential to global trade. ICC works with customs and logistics experts to promote simplified, modern border procedures and practical trade facilitation measures that keep trade fast, safe and secure. 

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Digital trade 

Digital trade is central to how businesses move goods, services, data and payments across borders, including through the growing use of AI. ICC brings business priorities into the negotiations shaping digital trade rules, supporting open, interoperable and trusted frameworks that make cross-border digital trade more accessible, predictable and secure. 

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Maritime piracy and armed robbery  

Maritime piracy and armed robbery endangers seafarers and disrupts vital trade routes. Through its International Maritime Bureau, ICC delivers real-time reporting and trusted alerts that help protect crews and keep trade moving. 

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Trade and environment 

Trade can be a powerful lever for climate action, resilience and sustainable growth. ICC works to make environmental measures affecting trade, including carbon border measures, clear, coherent and workable for business, while supporting circular trade flows and more sustainable value chains.

Featured trade tools and solutions 

Incoterms® rules

First published by ICC in 1936, Incoterms® rules are a set of eleven three-letter trade terms, reflecting business-to-business practice in contracts for the sale and purchase of goods.

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ICC Model Contracts and Clauses

ICC Model Contracts and Clauses provide businesses – from start-ups to SMEs to multinationals – with practical legal tools for international commercial activities, including sales, franchising, trademark licenses, and more.

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ICC Dispute Resolution Services

Market-leading, arbitration and dispute resolution services for companies, states and individuals.

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Grow your business beyond borders with ICC One Click

Are you a business looking to trade globally? ICC One Click is your gateway to trade tools, solutions and guides to export and grow globally.

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Want to be part of shaping the solution?

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Publications and proposals 

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  • 5 October 2026
  • Policy paper

Keeping rules of origin aligned with changing tariff codes

Outdated tariff codes can make it harder for businesses to benefit from free trade agreements. This ICC policy paper sets out practical recommendations to keep rules of origin – the criteria used to determine where a product is made and whether it qualifies for trade preferences – aligned with updates to the global system used to classify traded goods, known as the Harmonized System. Doing so helps preserve negotiated trade commitments and reduce compliance costs for businesses.

  • 15 September 2026
  • Policy paper

Why competition and industrial policies should co-exist

Competition policy and industrial policy are often portrayed as competing approaches to economic policymaking. Yet in an era of geopolitical uncertainty, supply chain disruptions and rapid technological change, both are essential. This policy paper examines how policymakers can align these frameworks to strengthen competitiveness, encourage investment and innovation, and support sustainable economic growth.

  • 14 September 2026
  • Policy paper

When food stops moving: why export restrictions fail in a crisis

Geopolitical shocks can disrupt food, fertiliser and other critical agricultural input markets, but history has taught us that export restrictions often make a bad situation even worse. This ICC policy paper examines how export restrictions amplify shortages, raise prices and undermine food security, while offering practical recommendations to keep global agricultural trade flowing in times of crisis.

  • 18 August 2026
  • Policy paper

Safeguarding food security amid the Hormuz crisis

The closure of the Strait of Hormuz in February 2026 severed a critical chokepoint for fertiliser and agricultural input trade. New research reveals the severity of this compound crisis spanning physical supply, commercial viability and farm-level demand. This ICC policy brief outlines key priorities for policy and industry action to safeguard global food security.

  • 31 July 2026
  • Guide

Financial crime risk controls: Vessel checking

Trade finance transactions involving sea shipments can provide financial institutions with unique visibility into the movement of goods, offering valuable opportunities to detect sanctions evasion, trade-based money laundering, fraud and other forms of financial crime. Developed by a working group of ICC’s Financial Crime Policy Taskforce, this guide explores challenges and best practices for financial institutions in identifying financial crime risks in trade finance transactions involving ocean shipment. It reviews regulatory considerations, outlines common deceptive shipping practices and sets out practical recommendations for implementing effective vessel screening controls.

  • 22 July 2026
  • Policy paper

What next for plurilateral trade agreements?

Trade rulemaking cannot wait. Outdated rules mean rising costs and complexity for businesses everywhere. With multilateral negotiations at an impasse, plurilateral trade agreements are the primary route to new ones. This ICC policy paper offers a fresh vision for unlocking the potential of plurilaterals in step with how business actually trades today.

  • 12 June 2026
  • Report

ICC Open Market Index 2026

The ICC Open Market Index (OMI) measures how open economies are to international trade and investment across a range of policy and performance indicators. The 2026 edition reflects the evolving global trade landscape, including the growing importance of services and digital trade, the expanded use of non-tariff measures, and the increasing impact of policy volatility on cross-border commerce. This edition applies the Index to the G7 economies, which together account for roughly one-third of global trade.

  • 8 June 2026
  • Report

Rethinking multilateralism: A new role for the private sector

As global challenges intensify and trust in multilateralism is tested, stronger partnerships between the private sector and multilateral institutions are urgently needed. Commissioned by ICC, this IE University report explores how international organisations and businesses can move toward a renewed architecture for global cooperation that delivers a more inclusive and outcome-driven system.

  • 4 May 2026
  • Report

When competition cannot be perfect: adapting antitrust to small and insular economies

Small and insular markets are essential commercial partners. Yet, these markets face structural constraints such as limited market size, geographical isolation and higher costs which means that competition often works differently than in larger economies. Drawing on insights from a survey of competition authorities in small and insular jurisdictions, this ICC report shows why competition policy cannot always be applied the same way everywhere. It offers practical recommendations to uphold core competition principles while adapting their application to local realities.

Latest articles and insights  

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  • 18 August 2026
  • News

Prolonged Hormuz shock could push cereal prices up by more than 80%

ICC-commissioned modelling finds that severe and sustained disruption could also contribute to around one million additional diet-related deaths in 2030 and leave 67 million more people underweight. Coordinated public and private sector action is needed to keep fertilisers and agricultural inputs flowing and prevent disruptions from deepening food insecurity.

  • 5 August 2026
  • News

ICC Trade Register becomes ICC Global Trade Intelligence Report to reflect expanded scope

The International Chamber of Commerce (ICC)’s flagship Trade Register has been renamed the ICC Global Trade Intelligence Report, reflecting its expanded focus on delivering data-driven insights into trade finance performance, global trade trends, market developments and economic resilience. The first edition under the new name will be released in September 2026.

  • 27 July 2026
  • News

Proposed UN mechanism to reopen Hormuz to commercial shipping

ICC is supporting a new confidence-building mechanism developed by the UN Secretary-General’s Strait of Hormuz Task Force to facilitate safe, orderly and predictable maritime transit through one of the world’s most critical trade routes.

ICC Secretary General John W.H. Denton AO
  • 24 July 2026
  • News

ICC expresses deep concern over new US Section 301 tariffs

ICC has issued a statement in response to new “Section 301” tariffs announced by the United States Trade Representative, expressing concern  they risk penalising legitimate commerce, creating significant uncertainty across global supply chains and increasing compliance costs for businesses.

  • 9 July 2026
  • News

Maritime piracy incidents fall to lowest since 1992, but risk remains

Maritime piracy and armed robbery incidents fell to their lowest level since 1992 in the first half of 2026, according to the latest report from ICC's International Maritime Bureau (IMB), released today. However, IMB warns there is no room for complacency, with crew safety still at risk and a slight resurgence of Somali piracy underscoring the need for continued vigilance.

  • 17 June 2026
  • News

New tracker shines light on global progress towards paperless trade

A new tool launched today tracks which countries are on the path to ratifying the United Nations Convention on Negotiable Cargo Documents – a landmark treaty that would allow cargo documents to go fully digital. Launched by the ICC Digital Standards Initiative (DSI), the United Nations Commission on International Trade Law (UNCITRAL) and the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (UNESCAP), the tracker maps each economy's progress across six stages, from awareness to ratification. With 28 economies already engaging and 10 signatures needed for the convention to enter into force, the race to paperless trade is becoming a lot more visible.

  • 2 June 2026
  • Podcast

How can business shape the future of multilateral cooperation?

As global fragmentation and power-based approaches increase uncertainty for businesses, ICC Secretary General John W.H. Denton AO joins Vrinda Tiwari, Asia-Pacific Programme Officer at the International Energy Agency (IEA), to discuss the evolving role of business in an increasingly complex global environment. From WTO reform to the Black Sea and the Strait of Hormuz, they make the case for why business must move from observer to active participant in shaping the future of multilateralism.

  • 1 June 2026
  • News

Digital ATA Carnet launches in 30 countries

ICC’s digital ATA Carnet system (eATA) goes live on 1 June, beginning the transition from paper-based carnets to an ICC-developed digital system across 30 countries comprising 27 European Union member states, Norway, Switzerland and the United Kingdom.