The Trump administration has proposed tariffs of up to 12.5 percent on imports from 60 trading partners, including the European Union, the United Kingdom, and Australia, over alleged failure to crack down on goods made with forced labor.

“Economies with partial forced labor bans face a 10% duty; all others face 12.5%,” CNBC stated.

The determination was made under Section 301 of the Trade Act of 1974.

More from The New York Times:

Jamieson Greer, the U.S. trade representative, said on Tuesday night that investigations found that the 59 countries, along with the 27-nation European Union, had failed to enact or effectively enforce laws prohibiting imports made with forced labor.

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The administration, invoking a legal provision known as Section 301, proposed a 12.5 percent duty on imports from countries including China, Brazil, South Korea, Switzerland and the United Kingdom. Goods from the European Union, Canada and Mexico would face 10 percent import taxes.

Mr. Trump has signaled he intends to use Section 301 to rebuild his tariff agenda after the Supreme Court ruled that he exceeded his authority by using the International Emergency Economic Powers Act, or IEEPA, to impose duties without congressional approval.

After the court struck down those tariffs, Mr. Trump sought to revive them partially with a global 10 percent duty under Section 122 of the Trade Act of 1974, a never-before-used provision. A trade court ruled in May that the move violated the law. The tariffs were initially scheduled to expire at the end of July.

Mr. Greer’s office has also opened an investigation into what the Trump administration has described as “excess manufacturing capacity” among 16 of America’s largest trading partners.

The tariffs are not immediate.

Written comments for the proposal are due by July 6, with public hearings scheduled on July 7.

“The failure of our most important trading partners to address the importation of goods made with forced labor is unacceptable. This creates a dynamic where American workers are forced to compete globally on an unlevel playing field,” Greer said, according to CNBC.

“We will no longer tolerate this disparity,” he added.

CNBC explained further:

An EU spokesperson described the reasoning behind the latest barrage of U.S. tariffs as “unjustified.”

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“On the EU side, we are on track to ensure implementation of our Joint Statement tariff commitments by the end of June,” they added in comments reported by Reuters.

While the Supreme Court setback helped slow down the tariff timeline, it has not “de-fanged” the president’s agenda, said Nick Marro, principal at Economist Intelligence Unit, who expects the Trump administration to unleash further investigations and tariff announcements in preparation for renewed rounds of trade talks.

The impact of proposed tariffs will, however, likely be softened by significant exemptions on goods including electronics and artificial intelligence-related products, Marro added.

While the tariff rates under Section 301 may be further adjusted, any meaningful changes will reshape global supply chains by creating different economic incentives for firms, said Deborah Elms, head of trade policy at the Hinrich Foundation.

Separately, the U.S. government also started seeking public comments Wednesday on the scope of a new U.S.-China Board of Trade — agreed by the two sides during a bilateral summit last month — which would lead to reduced tariff rates on each other’s goods. The government has also sought public opinion on non-sensitive sectors that could benefit from tariff modifications on both sides.

 

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