After the US Supreme Court struck down Donald Trump's emergency tariffs, the White House has turned to another trade law linked to alleged human rights abuses. DW explains the new tariffs and the debate surrounding them. Even some Republicans apparently expressing concern over measures against 85 countriesSign up for the US Breaking News emailDonald Trump has once again inspired anger and confusion in US allies and trading partners as he imposed a wave of tariffs on more than 80 countries, replacing an expiring global duty introduced earlier this year.The new measures effectively replace blanket 10% tariffs that Trump imposed in February.
The US supreme court ruled many of those were illegal. The new levies come in at between 10% and 12.5% on countries including the UK, Mexico, Canada, Australia, India, China and the 27 countries that make up the EU.If he was serious, he would not be applying the same tariff rate to China, one of the worst forced labor abusers in the world, as he does to countries like Australia. Then again, unlike China, Australia, doesn’t manufacture any Trump corporation products.This is the same administration that gutted funding to combat forced labor through cuts to the Bureau of International Labor Affairs and rolled back worker protections here at home, while encouraging companies to profit off some of the world’s worst forced labor abusers through his proposed US-China Board of Trade.Everything that you do that’s not focused on affordability is not helpful.
This might not be a negative five, but it’s a negative 0.5. Anything that you’re doing that is not on the plus side of the scale is a problem.When you announce new tariffs, it’s not like, okay, well, let’s see what they do. It’s, ‘Oh crap, those are the bad things.’I think Republicans are comfortable with the threat, even though that has some market impacts.
But actual revenue coming away from people’s pocketbooks is not what Republicans are happy with.Any conversation about tariffs, unless it’s reducing them, is a bad conversation for Republicans. Australia and the European Union were among U.S. trade partners who condemned the tariffs.(Image credit: Mark Schiefelbein)
President Donald Trump’s latest set of tariff hikes drew objections Friday from America’s trading partners including China and Japan, with Australia’s trade minister slamming them as “completely unjustified.” The administration announced extra tariffs of 10% to 12.5% on 60 economies late Thursday, saying the countries had failed to adequately enforce a ban on goods made with forced labor. The new tariffs took effect just as stopgap levies Trump imposed after a stinging defeat at the Supreme Court expired at 12:01 a.m. Countries object to what they call unfounded labor claims Australian Trade Minister Don Farrell rejected claims linking Australia, a major exporter of beef, gold and copper, to modern slavery and raising the tariff on its exports to the U.S.
to 12.5% from the 10% level imposed after Trump’s “Liberation Day” hikes last year. “We believe that amongst all of the countries in the world Australia does take the issue of slavery, modern slavery, seriously, and will continue to do that,” Farrell told reporters in Adelaide. Australia believes the higher tariffs are “completely unjustified and we will continue to lobby the United States Trade Representative to remove all tariffs on Australian goods,” Farrell said.
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