Trump Sets New Tariffs to Punish Use of 'Forced Labor,' Replacing Expiring Import Taxes

International Trade attorney Patrick Childress was quoted in a Washington Post article about the Trump Administration's new tariffs targeting countries that import goods produced with forced labor. The levies, which took effect Friday, impose a 12.5 percent rate on 60 economies lacking laws against forced-labor imports – including China, the United Kingdom and Japan – and a 10 percent rate on those the U.S. says have such laws but fail to enforce them, such as the European Union. The duties replaced a temporary 10 percent import tax that expired following the Supreme Court's February ruling invalidating the president's "Liberation Day" tariffs, and were imposed under Section 301 of the Trade Act of 1974 following a months-long United States Trade Representative (USTR) investigation. Mr. Childress noted that the forced labor tariffs are just one piece of the administration's broader trade strategy, with additional tariffs targeting nations that subsidize excess manufacturing capacity expected within weeks.

"The forced labor tariffs are not the end of the story," he said.

READ: Trump Sets New Tariffs to Punish Use of 'Forced Labor,' Replacing Expiring Import Taxes (Subscription required)