The US government has announced new tariffs on imports from 60 countries, which are set to take effect starting this Friday. According to a statement released on Thursday by the US Trade Representative, these tariffs-set at nominal rates between 10 and 12.5 percent-will affect the vast majority of US imports.
Following previous measures being rejected by the US Supreme Court, the government has reportedly found a new justification for these duties. They cite alleged insufficient effort by the affected nations to combat forced labor. The US Trade Law of 1974 permits action against foreign practices deemed unfair and detrimental to US trade, and the US government stated that a “months-long investigation” into forced labor within globally traded goods led to this conclusion.
The tariff rates are tiered: countries deemed to have at least implemented an import ban on goods produced by forced labor-or committed to such a ban through a mutual trade agreement-will face the lower rate of 10 percent. This group includes Argentina, Bangladesh, Cambodia, Canada, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, India, Indonesia, Jordan, Malaysia, Mexico, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Trinidad and Tobago, and the United Kingdom.
For the European Union, Taiwan, Japan, Korea, and Switzerland, the tariff will be 10 percent, provided no other specific exception applies. All other involved countries must pay the higher rate of 12.5 percent.
The government also confirmed that exceptions will be made for raw materials that, if subject to the tariff, could cause a shortage of domestic supply, as well as for products that are anticipated to cause economic disruption.
