Taiwan lands on initial U.S. list of forced labor tariffs

Taipei, June 3 (CNA) Taiwan is among 60 economies determined by the United States to have failed to impose or enforce a ban on the importation of goods produced with forced labor, according to a notice released Tuesday by the Office of the United States Trade Representative (USTR), which proposed imposing an additional 10 percent tariff on them.

In a news release issued the same day, the USTR said that following an investigation, it had determined under Section 301 of the Trade Act that the failure of the 60 economies to impose and effectively enforce a prohibition on the importation of goods produced with forced labor is "unreasonable" and "burdens or restricts" U.S. commerce.

The probe, launched on March 12 of this year, came less than three weeks after the U.S. Supreme Court struck down sweeping global tariffs imposed by President Donald Trump, and it is widely seen as an attempt by the Trump administration to rebuild tariff pressure on trading partners.

According to the USTR notice, Taiwan has "undertaken commitments" to ban goods produced with forced labor in the Agreement on Reciprocal Trade (ART), which it signed with the U.S. in February.

It is therefore grouped with economies that have made similar pledges in their respective ART, including Bangladesh, Cambodia, Indonesia, and Malaysia.

Other economies in the category include those that have imposed -- but not effectively enforced -- an import ban on goods produced through forced labor, such as Canada, the European Union, Mexico, and Pakistan, as well as those that only imposed a "partial ban," such as the United Kingdom.

In total, the office proposed imposing an additional 10 percent tariff on 14 economies, while the remaining 46 -- including Japan, South Korea, China, and India -- that have "failed to impose and effectively enforce" a forced labor import prohibition could face a 12.5 percent tariff, based on the office's recommendation.

An accompanying report released by the USTR the same day stated: "Taiwan appears to be taking steps to implement its ART commitment to the United States with respect to prohibiting the importation of goods produced with forced labor."

"However, at this time, Taiwan does not forbid legally the importation of goods produced with forced labor," the report said.

The Taiwanese government, however, noted that the USTR's proposals are not final and that it can dispute the recommended action within five days after a hearing held by the USTR on July 7.

The recommended tariff rate on Taiwan will not take immediate effect and will not be stacked upon existing tariffs under Section 232 of the Trade Expansion Act, Taiwan's Cabinet said in a statement.

The Cabinet said the results of the Section 301 probe will be announced in late July and expressed confidence that Taiwan will receive relatively favorable treatment among countries running trade surpluses with the U.S., while retaining the favorable terms it has secured so far in Taiwan-U.S. trade talks.