Host: Annik Sobing

In this Simply Trade Roundup, host Annik Sobing is joined by international trade and economic diplomacy expert Maria Pechurina for a deep dive into BRICS and what it means for global trade in 2026. Maria, who has a strong background in Chinese studies and international relations, explains how BRICS has expanded from its original five members to a much broader “BRICS Plus” bloc that now includes countries like Egypt, Ethiopia, Indonesia, Iran, Saudi Arabia, and the UAE, representing roughly 40% of global GDP, over 40% of the world’s population, about a quarter of global merchandise exports, and potentially half of the world’s oil production.​

Together, they explore how aggressive U.S. tariff policy in 2025 has accelerated a shift toward deeper BRICS cooperation and a more bipolar trading system. Maria illustrates this with examples such as U.S. tariffs on India that pushed New Delhi closer to Beijing and other BRICS partners, and she unpacks the growing trend toward non‑dollar settlement channels and local‑currency trade within the bloc. The conversation then turns to what all of this means for U.S.‑based trade and customs professionals, including the need to think in terms of “two playbooks” (U.S./EU vs. BRICS‑linked trade), prepare for more politically driven tariffs, and build scenarios and risk matrices that reflect a permanently more volatile environment.​

What You’ll Learn in This Episode

What BRICS and “BRICS Plus” are, who is involved, and why the bloc now represents a major share of global GDP, population, exports, and oil production.​

How U.S. tariffs and sanctions pressures in 2025 pushed countries toward deeper intra‑BRICS cooperation and regional trade (e.g., India–China, China–Brazil).​

Why 2025 effectively “broke” the old multilateral trade model and how 2026 is likely to cement a more bipolar system (U.S./EU vs. BRICS‑centric tracks).​

The rise of non‑dollar settlement and alternative payment systems, including local‑currency trade between Russia, China, India, and Brazil, and what that implies for dollar demand.​

How tariffs are increasingly used as political leverage, including “secondary” or punitive tariffs tied to countries’ domestic or foreign policy choices.​

What a dual‑track supply chain strategy looks like in practice for U.S. importers and compliance teams.

Key Takeaways

BRICS is no longer a fringe coalition; it is a central, growing pillar of global trade and energy, with China as a major center of gravity.​

U.S. and EU trade professionals must be ready to manage two distinct regulatory environments at once, with different expectations on origin, currency, sanctions, and documentation.​

Politically driven, rapidly announced tariffs will remain a major planning risk, making scenario modeling and proactive supplier strategies essential.​

Smaller and mid‑sized companies can amplify their influence by working through trade and industry groups to communicate real‑world impacts to policymakers.​

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