U.S. opens Section 301 forced‑labour probe of 60 nations
Get the Geopolitics newsletter
Daily geopolitics — wars, elections, sanctions, the diplomatic moves that move markets. Free.
- USTR launched a Section 301 unfair‑trade‑practices investigation of 60 economies for alleged failures to curb forced‑labour‑produced goods.
- The probe’s list includes major partners such as Australia, Canada, the EU, Britain, Israel, India, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and also China, Russia, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Japan, the Philippines, Singapore, South Korea, Taiwan, Thailand and Vietnam.
- Jamieson Greer said the investigations will assess whether foreign governments have taken sufficient steps to prohibit the import of forced‑labour goods and how any failure harms U.S. workers and businesses.
- Trump imposed a 10 % tariff for 150 days under Section 122 after a Supreme Court ruling, and Greer warned the Section 301 probe might result in new tariffs on China, the EU, India, Japan, South Korea and Mexico by summer.
- Singapore’s Ministry of Trade and Industry announced it will engage its U.S. counterpart on the Section 301 investigations.
- Deborah Elms noted that being on the list does not imply a country is accused of forced labour, but that the U.S. is checking whether each government is policing its supply chains and preventing forced‑labour imports.
- Elms warned that countries that do not act face high tariffs for years, and she suggested future probes may target digital trade, environmental standards and pollution.
Why it matters: Countries that cannot prove they block forced‑labour goods risk new Section 301 tariffs; the probe expands U.S. enforcement beyond Xinjiang and represents a shift toward more durable legal authorities, and the temporary 10 % tariffs expire in July. Elms warned that countries that do not act face high tariffs for years.
