Sri Lanka among countries facing 10% US tariff under new forced labour policy

Indian Express - Sri Lanka has been placed in the lower 10% tariff category under a new United States trade measure targeting imports linked to forced labour, according to the Office of the US Trade Representative (USTR).

The new tariffs, announced by the USTR on Thursday under the direction of US President Donald Trump, impose additional duties ranging from 10% to 12.5% on imports from 60 economies over what Washington described as inadequate measures to prevent goods made with forced labour from entering supply chains.

Sri Lanka is among 17 economies assigned the lower 10% tariff rate, together with India, the United Kingdom, Canada, Bangladesh, Indonesia, Mexico, Pakistan, Malaysia, Cambodia and several others.

According to the USTR, the 10% rate applies to economies that have banned imports produced with forced labour, committed to implementing such measures through reciprocal trade agreements, or already have partial restrictions in place.

The remaining economies investigated under the policy will face a higher 12.5% tariff, while products from the European Union, Japan, South Korea, Taiwan and Switzerland will also be subject to either a 10% or 12.5% tariff in addition to existing duties.

The new tariffs are scheduled to take effect from Friday.

USTR Ambassador Jamieson Greer said decades of international pressure had failed to eliminate forced labour from global supply chains and urged trading partners to adopt stronger import bans similar to those already enforced by the United States.

The investigations were launched in March under Section 301 of the US Trade Act of 1974, covering 60 economies. The USTR said it held discussions with more than 45 governments and reviewed over 1,600 public submissions before determining the final tariff rates.

Meanwhile, India, which had initially been considered for the higher 12.5% tariff, secured the lower 10% rate following what US officials described as constructive discussions with Washington on labour practices. The Trump administration also recently withdrew separate 25% tariffs imposed on India over its purchases of Russian oil.