US says it plans extra tariffs of 10% or more for most trading partners
after forced labor probe
[June 03, 2026]
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Trump administration is proposing that tariffs of
10% or more be imposed on products from dozens of major trading partners
following a probe into imports of goods allegedly made with forced
labor.
The report released early Wednesday by the U.S. Trade Representative
said Canada, Mexico, Taiwan and the United Kingdom and some other
countries and territories would face 10% additional tariffs for
allegedly failing to enforce a forced labor import ban.
A 12.5% additional tariff would be imposed on China, Japan, India, South
Korea, Brazil and Switzerland and dozens of other countries.
“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,” USTR Ambassador Jamieson Greer said in a
statement.
He added that "each of our trading partners must do more to ensure that
trade does not perversely encourage and entrench forced labor globally.”
The USTR said failure to prevent such imports is "unreasonable and
burdens or restricts U.S. commerce."
This latest barrage of tariffs is likely to unsettle key trading
partners that have been hit by waves of tariffs since President Donald
Trump returned to office early last year.
Just two weeks ago, the European Union approved a tariff deal with the
United States to cap tariffs on most EU exports at 15% following intense
debates among the EU’s 27 nations and threats by European lawmakers to
block the agreement.
Trump recently returned from a visit to China, where he and its leader
Xi Jinping discussed expanding market access for American businesses in
China and increasing Chinese investment into U.S. industries. The two
leaders agreed to set up separate boards of trade and investment —
though few details were provided.
A Chinese government spokesperson denied the forced labor allegation and
called for resolving economic issues through dialogue, saying a trade
war doesn't serve anyone's interests.
“There is no such thing as forced labor in China, and we oppose using it
as an excuse to engage in political manipulation,” Foreign Ministry
spokesperson Mao Ning said in Beijing.
The new tariffs would not take effect immediately. They are subject to
public comment and review. Public hearings on the proposed duties are
due to begin on July 7.
The investigation into alleged failure to prevent imports of goods
allegedly made by forced labor was conducted under Section 301 of the
Trade Act of 1974. The strategy would enable Trump to skirt limits on
his tariffs imposed by the Supreme Court.
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It found that 60 countries investigated had failed to enforce a
prohibition on the importation of goods produced with forced labor.
The report defined forced labor as “work or service exacted from a
person under the menace of any penalty for its nonperformance and
for which the worker does not offer himself voluntarily.”
It cited an estimate by the UN's International Labor Organization
that as of 2021, 27.6 million people were engaged in forced labor.
Rice imported from Myanmar, tobacco from Malawi, beef from Brazil,
and cotton and polysilicon from China were among the many products
it said are prone to involving forced labor.
The U.S. has long said imports of goods that include material from
China's far-western Xinjiang are at risk of using forced labor.
Beijing denies allegations of forced labor in the Muslim majority
region.
The Supreme Court ruled in February that Trump had overstepped his
authority by using a different law – the International Emergency
Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) of 1977 – to impose sweeping tariffs on
U.S. trading partners.
The Trump administration has said it would appeal a federal judge's
order making all companies that paid the duties on those earlier
tariffs eligible for refunds.
Earlier this week, the administration separately proposed 25%
tariffs on imports from Brazil, charging that the world’s
10th-biggest economy engages in trade practices that are
“unreasonable’’ and that “burden or restrict U.S. commerce.’’
The USTR said its investigation showed Brazil had lax
anti-corruption enforcement and unfair tariffs of its own, among
other things.
In its nearly 100-page report on forced labor, the USTR said that
even if a country enforces a ban on forced labor domestically,
importing goods made with forced labor violates the rules of fair
trade.
It said some key items would be exempt from the additional tariffs
or subject to lower tariffs, including certain textiles, tomatoes,
bananas, coffee and some metals.
___
AP Business Writer Elaine Kurtenbach contributed to this report.
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