Public Opinion of International Trade

A majority of Americans want to expand U.S. international trade:

60% of voters say creating a fair, level playing field for U.S. businesses to compete in foreign markets is very important.¹
56% say ending unfair foreign trade practices that keep U.S. goods and services out of foreign markets is very important.²
55% of voters believe it is very important to expand U.S. access to global markets.³
53% strongly agree that it is important for the United States to maintain an advantage over competing countries and markets in technology, ingenuity, and innovation.⁴

Americans also care a great deal about U.S. innovative industries:

72% of voters feel it is very important for the United States to lead in cybersecurity.⁵
67% believe U.S. policymakers must prioritize protecting American intellectual property and innovation.⁶
64% think it is very important to protect the pharmaceutical and biotech industry from unfair foreign trade practices.⁷
57% of voters believe it is important for the United States to be a global leader in high-tech industries.⁸

But voters are concerned our global trading partners aren’t acting fairly:

65% say seizing patents, copyrights, and other IP without the inventor’s permission, and ignoring U.S. IP and copyright laws are a major problem.⁹
60% say the United States must hold countries accountable for the commitments they make in trade agreements.¹⁰
56% of Americans believe the federal government should prevent other countries from stealing U.S. business’ ideas and inventions.¹¹
50% strongly agree that foreign governments need to set clear rules for US businesses to operate abroad.¹²