Particle.news

U.S. Imposes 10%–12.5% Tariffs on 60 Trading Partners

The administration is using Section 301 to pressure other countries to enforce bans on goods made with forced labor.

Overview

  • The tariffs take effect at 12:01 a.m. EDT Friday and replace the expiring 10% temporary global levy with a goods-in-transit exemption that runs through July 28.
  • Imports from countries judged to have adequate anti–forced-labor laws will pay 10% while those without adequate bans pay 12.5%, and some nations lowered their rate after adopting new rules.
  • Large carve-outs shield many products including oil and gas, fertilizer, USMCA-compliant goods, and items already under Section 232 national security tariffs to limit immediate consumer and supply-chain shocks.
  • The move follows the Supreme Court’s February limit on emergency IEEPA tariffs and marks a legal pivot to Section 301 investigations with separate probes into industrial overcapacity still underway.
  • The duties add to recent measures that include a 25% tariff on many Brazilian exports and up to 50% on some Canadian goods, and governments and firms warn of diplomatic disputes, legal challenges, and sector pain such as layoffs in Brazil’s footwear industry.