US prepares new tariff wave targeting key trading partners – Politico

The administration of US President Donald Trump is preparing to impose new tariffs on key US trading partners, including the EU and Canada, over concerns related to forced labour, according to a report by the Office of the US Trade Representative (USTR) cited by POLITICO.

The investigation conducted by the trade representative’s office recommended tariffs on goods from 60 countries, citing their failure to enact and enforce laws prohibiting products made with forced labour.

“The failure of our most important trading partners to address the importation of goods made with forced labor is unacceptable,” US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer said in a written statement. “This creates a dynamic where American workers are forced to compete globally on an unlevel playing field. We will no longer tolerate this disparity.”

The USTR investigation, conducted under Section 301 of the Trade Act of 1974, found that the European Union and five countries — Canada, Ecuador, Indonesia, Mexico, and Pakistan — had failed to effectively enforce existing forced labour prohibitions. It recommends a 10% tariff on these countries. The findings come at a critical moment for US-EU trade relations, as Brussels is scheduled to vote later this month on reducing tariffs on American goods under an agreement reached in July last year. 

The development also offers some relief for Canada and Mexico amid ongoing talks over the US-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA), the North American trade pact set for mandatory review this year. Both countries were previously required to introduce measures targeting forced labour under the original USMCA framework signed by Trump during his first term.

Meanwhile, the other 44 countries covered by the USTR probe are expected to face a 12.5 percent tariff, including key trading partners such as Japan and South Korea. This rate is slightly below the level imposed by Trump last year under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act, but remains higher than the temporary 10 percent global tariff currently in effect, introduced after the Supreme Court struck down earlier duties.

Alongside the forced labour probe, the USTR is also examining 15 countries over concerns related to excess manufacturing capacity. These include Bangladesh, Cambodia, China, the European Union, Indonesia, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, Norway, Singapore, South Korea, Switzerland, Taiwan, Thailand, and Vietnam.

The USTR has invited written submissions by July 6 and plans to hold public hearings on July 7.

By Jeyhun Aghazada