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US cites forced labour concerns as grounds for new tariffs
TL;DR
The US has proposed new tariffs of up to 12.5% on imports from 60 countries due to concerns over forced labor in supply chains. This move follows a Section 301 investigation and has been met with rejection from US trading partners.
Key points
- US proposed tariffs of up to 12.5% on imports from 60 economies
- Tariffs are based on forced labor concerns
- Proposal follows a Section 301 unfair trade practices investigation
- Affected countries include Canada, EU, China, and India
- Trading partners rejected US findings
Mentioned in this story
Office of the United States Trade RepresentativeDonald TrumpUnited StatesEuropean UnionCanadaChinaIndia
The administration of US President Donald Trump has proposed new tariffs of up to 12.5 percent on imports from 60 economies after determining they had failed to curb trade in goods made with forced labour, an assertion that was rejected by US trading partners.
The proposal from the Office of the United States Trade Representative (USTR), issued late on Tuesday, comes from a Section 301 unfair trade practices investigation designed to help rebuild US President Donald Trump’s emergency tariffs, struck down by a US Supreme Court decision in February.
Despite laws banning them, the products of forced labour are deeply embedded in supply chains across the world. European lawmakers bristle at the accusation that the region is less effective than the US at curbing the trade in such goods, with one describing the US findings as “utterly absurd”. Business leaders said the US move created more confusion for companies.
The USTR proposed 10 percent additional duties on imports from Canada, Ecuador, the European Union, Indonesia, Mexico, Pakistan, Argentina, Bangladesh, Cambodia, El Salvador, Guatemala, Malaysia, Taiwan and Britain. The USTR said all had plans or partial schemes in place.
The trade agency said it would impose additional duties of 12.5 percent on the remaining 45 countries that it investigated. These include China, India, Nigeria, Japan, South Korea, Vietnam, Australia and New Zealand.
“The failure of our most important trading partners to address the importation of goods made with forced labour is unacceptable,” US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer said in a statement. “This creates a dynamic where American workers are forced to compete globally on an unlevel playing field.”
The USTR said it would accept public comments on the proposed tariffs and other remedies through July 6, with a public hearing scheduled for July 7.
The announcement comes ahead of the July 24 expiration of a 10 percent temporary tariff imposed by the Trump administration on February 20, the day the Supreme Court struck down Trump’s tariffs under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act. It also shows how determined the Trump administration is about building a wall of tariffs around the US economy, the world’s largest, despite repeated setbacks in court.
After the loss in the Supreme Court, Trump turned to another law to impose temporary 10 percent tariffs globally. But those stopgap levies expire July 24. And a specialised trade court ruled last month that they, too, were illegal– though the government can continue collecting them while that case works its way through the courts.
Q&A
What are the new tariffs proposed by the US on imports?
The US proposed tariffs of up to 12.5% on imports from 60 economies due to forced labor concerns.
Which countries are affected by the new US tariffs on forced labor goods?
Countries affected include Canada, the EU, China, India, and several others, totaling 60 economies.
Why did the US propose these tariffs related to forced labor?
The tariffs were proposed after a Section 301 investigation found that these countries failed to curb trade in goods made with forced labor.
How have trading partners reacted to the US tariffs on forced labor?
US trading partners have rejected the accusations, with European lawmakers calling the findings 'utterly absurd.'
