Trump government applies new tariffs to Brazil and 59 other countries; see the list of those affected

US President Donald Trump in a meeting with Lebanese President Joseph Aoun (not pictured) in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington. Evelyn Hockstein / Reuters The United States announced this Thursday (23) that it will apply a 12.5% ??tariff on Brazilian products. The rate corresponds to the ceiling foreseen at this stage of the commercial investigation into forced labor and comes into force at 00:01 this Friday (24). In addition to Brazil, 59 other countries will also be affected by Donald Trump's new measure. ? At this stage, the USA established two rates. Countries that, in the assessment of the American government, have adopted measures to prohibit the import of goods produced with forced labor will pay 10%. Those considered insufficient in this fight, as in Brazil, will be subject to a rate of 12.5%. The decision is the result of an investigation conducted based on Section 301 of the US Trade Law. According to the American government, the process concluded that these countries adopt unfair trade practices by not prohibiting or adequately monitoring the entry of goods produced with forced labor. ? The argument is similar to that used by the USA to justify the 25% tariff applied to Brazilian products, which came into force last Wednesday (22). With the new measure, some products from Brazil may now face a total surcharge of 37.5%. Check below the complete list of countries that will be affected by the new tariffs: Trump tariff: US confirms new tariff of up to 12.5% on forced labor for Brazil and other trading partnersTrump tariff: US confirms new tariff of up to 12.5% on forced labor for Brazil and other trading partners12.5% tariff (54 economies) Algeria — 12.5% Angola — 12.5% Argentina — 12.5% Australia — 12.5% Bahamas — 12.5% Bahrain — 12.5% Bangladesh — 12.5% Brazil — 12.5% Cambodia — 12.5% Chile — 12.5% China — 12.5% Colombia — 12.5% Costa Rica — 12.5% Dominican Republic — 12.5% Egypt — 12.5% El Salvador — 12.5% Guatemala — 12.5% Guyana — 12.5% Honduras — 12.5% Hong Kong — 12.5% India — 12.5% Iraq — 12.5% Israel — 12.5% Japan — 12.5% Jordan — 12.5% Kazakhstan — 12.5% Kuwait — 12.5% Libya — 12.5% Malaysia — 12.5% Morocco — 12.5% New Zealand — 12.5% Nicaragua — 12.5% Nigeria — 12.5% Norway — 12.5% Oman — 12.5% Peru — 12.5% Philippines — 12.5% Qatar — 12.5% Russia — 12.5% Saudi Arabia — 12.5% Singapore — 12.5% South Africa — 12.5% South Korea — 12.5% Sri Lanka — 12.5% Switzerland — 12.5% Taiwan — 12.5% Thailand — 12.5% Trinidad and Tobago — 12.5% Turkey — 12.5% United Arab Emirates — 12.5% United Kingdom — 12.5% Uruguay — 12.5% Venezuela — 12.5% Vietnam — 12.5% 10% tariff (6 economies) Canada — 10% Ecuador — 10% European Union — 10% Indonesia — 10% Mexico — 10% Pakistan — 10% Tariffs applied to Brazil In the document released this Thursday, the Office of the US Trade Representative (USTR) stated that Brazil is among the countries that "failed to impose and effectively enforce a ban on the import of goods produced with forced labor." The agency added that the decision took into account the conclusions of the investigation, the contributions received during the public consultation and the guidance of President Donald Trump. According to the document, both the charge and the exceptions provided for are "appropriate to obtain the elimination of the acts, policies and practices" identified throughout the investigation. In practice, this means that some products will remain exempt from the tariff. According to the American government, items considered strategic for the US economy or whose taxation could compromise the objectives of the investigation itself will be left out of collection. Exceptions include: raw materials whose taxation could cause shortages in the American market; products that could cause broad economic impacts if taxed; items that cannot be produced or grown in sufficient quantities in the US or obtained from other suppliers; products whose exemption may encourage other countries to adopt measures to prohibit the import of goods produced with forced labor; and products for which the additional tariff would not contribute significantly to combating the practices investigated by the United States.

"Irrational" Practice According to a report released in early July by the USTR, the practice was considered "irrational" and harms American commerce by creating conditions of competition considered unfair for US companies and workers. "The failure of our trading partners to address the import of goods made with forced labor is unacceptable," U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer said at the time. "This forces American workers to compete on an uneven playing field. We will no longer tolerate it." The investigation concluded that the entry of these products into global markets not only harms the profitability of ethical companies, but also encourages the maintenance of modern slave labor by allowing the circulation of goods produced at artificially low costs. In relation to Brazil, the report states that, although the country makes commitments to combat slave labor in trade and investment agreements, it still does not have a ban considered effective by the US to prevent the entry of goods produced under these conditions into the domestic market. The document mentions the existence of the Slave Labor Dirty List, updated every six months by the federal government, but highlights that the focus of the American investigation was the absence of mechanisms to prevent the import of goods produced with forced labor in other countries. New rates replace previous tariffs In practice, the new tariffs replace the 10% global rate announced by American President Donald Trump in February this year, shortly after the US Supreme Court overturned the "reciprocal tariffs" imposed by the Republican last year.

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