US eyes fresh tariffs vs PH over forced-labor imports
A United States agency has proposed additional tariffs on 60 of its largest trading partners—including the Philippines—for lack of sufficient safeguards against the importation of goods produced through forced labor.
In a report detailing the findings of its Section 301 investigations, the Office of the United States Trade Representative (USTR) on Wednesday (Manila time) said “the Philippines has failed to impose and effectively enforce a forced-labor import prohibition.”
The USTR said this failure was “unreasonable” and “burdens or restricts US commerce.”
“This creates a dynamic where American workers are forced to compete globally on an unlevel playing field,” US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer said in a statement. “We will no longer tolerate this disparity.”
Following the findings, the USTR proposed imposing an additional 12.5-percent tariff on goods from countries that it said have failed to establish and effectively enforce safeguards against imports made with forced labor.
Even economies that have adopted some form of prohibition were not spared. The USTR proposed a 10-percent tariff on countries that maintain either a forced-labor import ban or what it described as a “partial regime” restricting such shipments.
Hearings on the proposed penalties begin on July 7.
‘Unreasonable restriction’
Although the proposed duties have yet to be finalized, Philippine Exporters Confederation Inc. president Sergio Ortiz-Luis Jr. said the move would be an “unreasonable restriction” that could further add to uncertainty surrounding US trade policy.
“Who are we to judge if the products we imported were produced from forced labor,” Ortiz-Luis told the Inquirer. “Perhaps, the better way to do it is if they will identify which product from where, then we can come up with legislation.”
But Ortiz-Luis said the additional tariffs are unlikely to significantly affect Philippine exports since many of the country’s competitors are also covered by the proposal.
In the Philippines’ official response to the probe in April, Trade Undersecretary Allan Gepty argued the country already has a robust legal framework against forced labor and its imports neither burden nor restrict US commerce.
The USTR investigation was launched on May 12 covering 60 economies, including China, the European Union, Russia, Brazil, Japan, India, Israel, Mexico, the United Arab Emirates, Thailand, Hong Kong, Vietnam, Malaysia and South Korea.
