The United States Trade Representative (USTR) announced on the 12th that it will launch a new round of "Section 301" investigations targeting 60 economies, including Taiwan, China, Japan, South Korea, and the European Union. The purpose is to determine whether the policies and practices of these economies regarding their “failure to prohibit and effectively enforce bans on the import of forced labor products” are unreasonable or discriminatory, and whether they impose burden or restrictions on US trade.
The economies listed for investigation announced on the 12th include 60 US trading partners, such as Malaysia, Australia, Argentina, Brazil, Cambodia, Canada, Chile, China, the European Union, Hong Kong, India, Indonesia, Israel, Japan, Mexico, Norway, Peru, the Philippines, Russia, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, South Korea, Switzerland, Taiwan, Thailand, the United Kingdom, the United Arab Emirates, Vietnam, and others.
On the 11th, the US Trade Representative Office had just announced launching a “Section 301” investigation relating to structural overcapacity in manufacturing against 16 countries and regions, including Malaysia.
US Trade Representative Katherine Tai stated that, although there is international consensus on combating forced labor, governments worldwide have still failed to implement and effectively enforce relevant measures to prohibit forced labor products from entering their markets. For a long time, US workers and businesses have been forced to compete with foreign producers who may benefit from artificial cost advantages derived from the harms of forced labor.
She said: "This investigation will determine whether foreign governments have taken adequate measures to prohibit the importation of forced labor products, and assess the impact that the failure to eradicate these abhorrent practices has on US workers and businesses."
The US Trade Representative Office stated that a hearing regarding this investigation will be held on April 28.
The US Trade Act’s Section 301 stipulates that when it is determined there is discrimination against US businesses or violations of US interests in trade agreements, the US government may impose additional tariffs.