Washington, the United States has imposed a 10% tariff on goods purchased from India and 16 other countries due to the use of forced labor in their production.
U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer announced Friday the imposition of new tariffs on 60 countries under Section 301 of the Trade Act, a day after the 10% tariff imposed on all countries the day before was set to expire.
A statement from the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative said Greer, at the direction of President Donald Trump, took final action under Section 301 of the Trade Act of 1974 to impose tariffs on 60 economies because they failed to implement and effectively enforce bans on the import of goods produced with forced labor.
This action will begin to correct human rights abuses and trade distortions to improve the welfare of workers around the world,” Greer said in a statement.
The 10% tariff applies to 17 countries, including India, Canada, the United Kingdom, Bangladesh and Pakistan.
Previously, India was included in the list of countries that imposed a 12.5% tariff.
In this regard, a federal note noted India’s move to impose a ban on forced labor imports following the announcement of proposed tariffs in June.
On June 14, India revised its foreign trade policy and banned the import of goods produced using forced labor.
The Trump administration launched both investigations after the U.S. Supreme Court in February ruled that last year’s use of emergency powers for “reciprocal tariffs” was illegal. The government responded by imposing 10% tariffs on all countries, which are due to expire on Friday.
India has contested two investigations launched by the U.S. Trade Representative’s Office and insisted the issues can be discussed as part of the ongoing bilateral trade agreement.
The United States is India’s second largest trading partner and largest export destination. According to data from the Ministry of Commerce, the bilateral trade in goods volume in 2025 will be close to US$141 billion, of which India’s exports will be US$87.3 billion.
This article was generated from automated news agency feeds without modifications to the text.
