US Plans Additional Tariffs for China, Japan, South Korea and Others

The administration of US President Donald Trump plans to impose an additional tariff of 12.5 per cent on goods from China, Japan, South Korea, and more than 40 other countries. Washington has accused these nations of failing to take adequate measures to prohibit the import of goods suspected of being produced using forced labour.

The proposal was released by the Office of the United States Trade Representative (USTR) on Tuesday evening. This move follows the US Supreme Court’s decision in February to overturn broad tariff policies previously implemented by Trump under 1970s-era emergency laws. Following that ruling, the US government launched several trade investigations into practices deemed unfair by US trading partners.

According to the proposal, imports from several of the US’s major trading partners, including Indonesia, Malaysia, Taiwan, and the European Union, would be subject to a new tariff of 10 per cent. The USTR explained that this lower rate is the result of an investigation into 60 economies, which showed that some countries have taken steps to ban imports of goods suspected of being produced with forced labour.

In an effort to rebuild Trump’s tariff regime following the legal setback, the US government previously introduced a 10 per cent global tariff using a different legal basis. However, this additional levy can only remain in effect for 150 days unless Congress approves an extension. In this context, the US government is seeking to replace the general 10 per cent tariff with a new tariff using Section 301 of the Trade Act of 1974.

US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer stated that the failure of many US trading partners to address labour issues “creates a situation where American workers are forced to compete globally on an unlevel playing field.”

However, the proposed tariffs will not be implemented immediately, as they must still undergo public hearings scheduled for 7 July. Japan’s Minister of Economy, Trade and Industry, Ryosei Akazawa, wrote on social media that the public need not worry, as tariffs against Japan would not be affected. He stated that he had reaffirmed to the Trump administration that the US would not impose tariffs higher than the levels agreed upon bilaterally last year. Prior to the US Supreme Court ruling, imports from Japan were subject to a specific country tariff of 15 per cent.