Trump Unveils Sweeping Forced-Labor Tariffs on 60 Nations as Stopgap Levies Expire

New 10–12.5% duties take effect Friday under Section 301 authority, targeting countries deemed lax on forced-labor enforcement.

President Donald Trump is moving forward with double-digit tariffs on dozens of U.S. trading partners just as the temporary 10% global levies he imposed after a Supreme Court setback are set to lapse at 12:01 a.m. Friday in Washington (04:01 GMT).

The United States will apply duties of 10% to 12.5% on imports from 60 countries that together account for 99% of U.S. imports, asserting that those nations have failed to adequately enforce bans on goods produced with forced labor.

“The United States has had a forced-labor import ban for nearly a century, and rigorously enforces it; it’s well past time for our trading partners to do the same,” U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer said in a statement Thursday. “Today’s action will begin to correct what is both a human rights abuse and a distortive trade practice to improve the welfare of workers everywhere.”

The new measures rely on Section 301 of the Trade Act of 1974, which authorizes the president to impose import taxes and other sanctions against countries found to engage in “unjustifiable,” “unreasonable,” or “discriminatory” trade practices. Trump used the same provision to levy steep tariffs on China during his first term, and those duties withstood judicial review.

Additional Section 301 actions appear likely. Greer’s office has opened an investigation into whether 16 countries — representing 70% of U.S. imports — have engaged in overproduction that depresses global prices and disadvantages American producers. That probe remains ongoing.

Trump has argued that high tariffs will revive domestic manufacturing, reversing decades of U.S. policy favoring lower barriers and freer trade. Last year, he invoked the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) to impose broad double-digit tariffs, declaring the persistent trade deficit a national emergency. The Supreme Court ruled, however, that IEEPA does not authorize tariffs, forcing the administration to refund importers who had paid those duties.

In response, Trump turned to Section 122 of the Trade Act of 1974 to impose a 10% worldwide tariff, but that authority is limited to 150 days — a window that closes Friday.

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