Supply chain transparency (SCT) regulations mandate or encourage international trade participants to provide information about a product’s supply chain path to specified stakeholders. SCT is an important regulatory tool for pursuing various public policy objectives, such as supply chain security, resilience, trade facilitation, and sustainable development. The transnational nature of SCT regulations and their characteristics as a technical barrier to trade (TBT) have created challenges to global trade governance and the international rule of law. This article focuses on SCT regulations adopted by the United States and the European Union. It suggests that recent US and EU SCT regulations are likely to constitute extraterritorial jurisdiction over foreign traders and data beyond their borders, create TBTs for many traders, and may conflict with domestic data security laws (DSLs). To promote the international rule of law and public-private collaborative governance, the article proposes recommendations for designing and implementing SCT regulations at the international level.
Global Trade and Customs Journal