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The United States on Tuesday (local time) announced the proposal of a fresh slew of additional tariffs of 10 per cent and an additional duty of 12.5 per cent on key global economies, claiming that investigations have revealed goods being imported from 60 countries are produced via forced labour.
The USTR listed 54 economies which it claimed have failed to impose and effectively enforce a prohibition on the importation of goods produced with forced labour. The list includes countries such as Australia, China, India, Israel, Japan, Qatar, and Russia. Other countries listed included Saudi Arabia, Singapore, South Korea, Sri Lanka; Switzerland, Taiwan, Thailand, Turkiye UAE, the United Kingdom. The details were shared by the US Office of Trade Representative in a press statement. According to the USTR, economies that already have some form of forced labour import prohibition, or have committed to implementing such measures through trade agreements, could face an additional tariff of 10 per cent. Other economies may face a 12.5 per cent additional duty. The proposed action also includes a textile mechanism that would allow a certain volume of apparel and textile imports from some economies to enter the US at a reduced Section 301 tariff rate. As per the USTR, the action comes under Section 301 of the Trade Act of 1974 which allows measures to be taken over 60 economies over their acts, policies and practices related to the failure to what it called impose and prohibit goods produced with forced labour--calling it unreasonable and a burden on US commerce. As a result of these investigations, the USTR proposed additional duties on all products of the investigated economies, and invited public comments on the move. "For economies that impose a forced labour import prohibition, that have committed to impose and enforce such a prohibition through an Agreement on Reciprocal Trade, or economies that have imposed a partial regime with the effect of preventing the importation of certain forced labor goods, the U.S. Trade Representative proposes 10% as the rate of additional duties. For all other economies, the U.S. Trade Representative proposes 12.5% as the rate of additional duty. The U.S. Trade Representative also proposes a textile mechanism that would allow for a certain volume of apparel and textile imports from certain economies to enter the United States at a reduced Section 301 tariff rate", the statement said. The USTR flagged 6 economies for having failed to effectively enforce a prohibition on the importation of goods produced with forced labour. These include the European Union, Pakistan and Canada. "The failure of our most important trading partners to address the importation of goods made with forced labour is unacceptable. This creates a dynamic where American workers are forced to compete globally on an unlevel playing field," said Ambassador Jamieson Greer. The fresh salvo of proposed tariffs comes at a time when Indian negotiators are set to focus on securing preferential market access against competitors during talks with the visiting US team to finalise the bilateral trade agreement (BTA), sources said on Monday. The sources told ANI that trade relief from US Section 301 investigations will also be on the top of the agenda with US trade team. The talks, scheduled June 1-4, are led by US Chief Negotiator Brendan Lynch and India's Additional Secretary Darpan Jain.According to the Ministry of Commerce, the round will finalise details of the interim pact and advance negotiations under the broader BTA on market access, non-tariff measures, customs and trade facilitation, investment promotion and economic security alignment. (ANI)
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