Government Responds to New US Import Tariffs

The United States government is imposing an additional 10 percent import tariff on 60 trading partner countries, including Indonesia, starting 24 July 2026, amid ongoing trade investigations. The Indonesian government is continuing to lobby for a competitive tariff rate. Haryo Limanseto, spokesperson for the Coordinating Ministry for Economic Affairs, stated that the Office of the United States Trade Representative (USTR) set the new tariff based on the results of a Section 301 investigation. “Indonesia is subject to an additional 10 percent tariff under Section 301, along with 16 other countries or regions, such as Malaysia, India, Mexico, Canada, and the United Kingdom,” he said in an official statement quoted on Sunday, 26 July 2026. The USTR previously conducted a Section 301 investigation into 60 countries or 16 economic regions under the Trade Act of 1974. For Indonesia, the investigation covered two issues: excess capacity in the manufacturing sector and the prohibition of imports of goods produced using forced labour. Regarding the forced labour allegations, Haryo noted that the government is observing the USTR’s acknowledgment that Indonesia is one of the countries actively committed and possessing a regulatory framework to prevent and eradicate forced labour in the global supply chain. Furthermore, based on information from the US, the results of the investigation into the excess capacity issue will be published soon. “We are still waiting for the official results and announcement of the investigation and certainly hope that the tariffs applied will be favourable for Indonesia,” Haryo said. The government also hopes that products previously exempted through the signing of the Agreement of Reciprocal Trade (ART) between Indonesia and the US can be accommodated. “The government is actively consulting with the USTR to obtain the best and most competitive tariffs.” Section 301 is a rule that grants the USTR the authority to investigate and impose sanctions on foreign governments deemed to be engaging in unfair trade practices against the US. This step was taken after the US Supreme Court struck down the legal basis for the reciprocal tariff policy that had been previously implemented. The USTR announced the investigation on 11 March 2026. The countries subject to the investigation include China, Singapore, Switzerland, Norway, Indonesia, Malaysia, Cambodia, Thailand, South Korea, Vietnam, Taiwan, Bangladesh, Mexico, Japan, India, and the European Union. Following the investigation, the US government announced it would impose new tariffs of 10 percent or 12.5 percent on imports from 60 major trading partners. The policy was enacted because these countries were deemed not sufficiently stringent in banning imports of goods produced using forced labour. The announcement was made a day before the global 10 percent tariff imposed by President Donald Trump in February was set to expire. “President Trump recognises that decades of moral suasion have failed to eliminate forced labour practices from global supply chains,” said US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer.