Pakistan Stays on US Intellectual Property Watch List for 2026

The Office of the United States Trade Representative (USTR) released the 2026 Special 301 Report yesterday. Consequently, Pakistan remains on the US Watch List. This annual report evaluates how America’s trading partners enforce and protect intellectual property rights globally. The USTR reviewed over 100 trading partners and placed 25 countries on either the Watch List or the Priority Watch List.

Pakistan sits among 19 trading partners on the standard Watch List. Other notable entries include Canada, the European Union, Brazil, and Egypt. Therefore, the USTR requires further bilateral attention to resolve underlying intellectual property problems in these nations.

This status does not automatically trigger trade penalties. However, it ensures that intellectual property protection remains a mandatory topic in ongoing US-Pakistan trade monitoring.

Fortunately, Pakistan avoided the stricter Priority Watch List. The US reserves that higher category for countries needing intensive engagement over the next year. Currently, Chile, China, India, Indonesia, Russia, and Venezuela occupy this tier.

Meanwhile, Vietnam faces the absolute strongest scrutiny. The USTR named Vietnam the only Priority Foreign Country in the 2026 report. Now, the agency will decide within 30 days whether to launch a Section 301 investigation. If the investigation begins, Washington will aggressively seek consultations with Vietnam to fix the identified IP failures.

The 2026 report highlighted several global shifts. Argentina and Mexico improved their intellectual property policies. As a result, the USTR moved both nations from the Priority Watch List down to the standard Watch List. Additionally, the USTR added the European Union to the Watch List, while completely removing Bulgaria from the monitoring process entirely.

BusinessHub Power Profit from BYD Stake Plunges 99.8% in One YearBy Sabica Tahira|14 hours ago |2 min readThe Hub Power Company (HUBC) has reported a sharp decline in earnings from its investment in the BYD project, with profits falling by 99.8% to just Rs. 0.5.

BusinessPSX Falls Below 163,000 as US-Iran Tensions Trigger Market SelloffBy Sabica Tahira|14 hours ago |2 min readPakistan’s stock market extended its losses on Thursday, with the benchmark KSE-100 Index falling 1.71% to close at 162,994 points, as escalating geopolitical tensions dampened investor sentiment..