US President Donald Trump is preparing to impose new double-digit tariffs on 60 countries he accuses of failing to combat forced labor.
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The new tariffs, ranging from 10 to 12.5 percent, will take effect Friday and replace the 10 percent global tariff imposed by Trump earlier this year, which expires at 12:01 a.m. that day.
The tariffs announced Thursday will affect dozens of U.S. trading partners, including major economies such as China, India and the European Union, which account for 99% of U.S. imports.
“The United States has had a ban on the import of products produced by forced labor for nearly a century, and it has been strictly enforced; It’s time for our trading partners to do the same.”This was stated by US Trade Representative Jamison Greer.
Last year, Trump imposed double-digit tariffs on imports from nearly every country in the world, arguing that the U.S. trade deficit was a national emergency.
In February, the Supreme Court ruled that Trump did not have the legal authority to impose such tariffs under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act of 1977 (IEEPA).
As a result, the administration had to reimburse importers who paid those tariffs, and Trump instead announced a blanket tariff of 10%, citing Section 122 of the 1974 Trade Act.
But those charges under that article can only remain in effect for 150 days and are set to expire on Friday. The expiring 10% tariffs will now be replaced by new tariffs that are less likely to face legal challenges than previous measures.
The new tariffs announced were consistent with Section 301 of the Trade Act of 1974, which authorizes the president to impose import taxes and other sanctions on countries the United States determines are engaging in trade practices. “unjustified”, “unreasonable” or “discriminatory”.
Countries that have introduced or committed to ban the import of forced labor products, including Canada, the EU, India and the UK, will be subject to a 10% rate. Other countries such as China, Japan and South Korea will be subject to a higher rate of 12.5%.
Certain products are exempt from these fees, including oil and gas, fertilizers, and products covered by the North American Free Trade Agreement between the United States, Mexico and Canada.
This decision drew sharp criticism in the respective countries. Brazil, which is subject to tariffs of 12.5%, considers this a solution “arbitrary and unjustified” and plans to impose retaliatory tariffs against the United States.
Washington “decided to manipulate an issue of great importance to human rights and workers’ struggles around the world in order to accuse 59 countries and the European Union of unfair practices”said the Brazilian government.
For Chile there is also a rate of 12.5%. Deputy Minister of International Economic Relations of Chile Paula Estevez assured that the country “strong labor institutions, a robust legal and regulatory framework and a strong commitment to preventing and eradicating forced labor.”
The EU reacts with cautious optimism
The European Union reacted with cautious optimism to the latest tariff announcement, stressing that it is in line with the EU-US trade agreement reached last year in Turnberry, Scotland.
“The EU welcomes that this outcome is consistent with the tariff commitments made by the United States in the EU-US Joint Statement.”said a representative of the European Commission, adding that this created “Positive impetus to continue working on exploring new tariff benefits and deepening cooperation.”
Turnberry Agreement imposed US tariffs of 15% on imports from the EU, while the Union pledged to eliminate tariffs on most US manufactured goods.
Forced labor is defined by the International Labor Organization (ILO) Forced Labor Convention 1930 as “any work or service required of a person under threat of any penalty and for which the said person has not offered himself of his own free will.”
According to the UN agency, 27.6 million people were forced into forced labor worldwide in 2021.