{"text":[[{"start":9.5,"text":"The US has announced plans to impose tariffs of at least 10 per cent on dozens of countries following a probe into forced labour practices, in the first significant effort by the White House to resurrect levies since its defeat at the US Supreme Court this year."}],[{"start":24.4,"text":"The Office of the US Trade Representative said it intended to impose tariffs on 60 countries for not doing enough to prevent the import of goods using forced labour, a failing that it claimed left US workers competing on an “unlevel playing field”."}],[{"start":40.099999999999994,"text":"China, the EU, India, Japan and the UK are among the major economies targeted by the proposal, which would set tariffs of between 10 per cent and 12.5 per cent."}],[{"start":51.99999999999999,"text":"Setting out the proposal late on Tuesday, US trade representative Jamieson Greer said: “The failure of our most important trading partners to address the importation of goods made with forced labor is unacceptable. This creates a dynamic where American workers are forced to compete globally on an unlevel playing field.”"}],[{"start":72.69999999999999,"text":"Donald Trump’s administration vowed to resume its trade war after America’s top court in April ruled that most of the tariffs announced on “liberation day” last year were illegal."}],[{"start":84.35,"text":"The proposal from the USTR relies on Section 301 of the Trade Act of 1974, which allows the White House to open investigations into the practices of trading partners."}],[{"start":95.94999999999999,"text":"Under the Trade Act, the planned levies cannot be imposed immediately and are subject to public comment. "}],[{"start":102.29999999999998,"text":"The USTR divided the 60 trading partners targeted by the measure into two categories, imposing a 10 per cent levy on the EU and 15 other countries, including Mexico, Argentina, Taiwan and the UK. "}],[{"start":115.39999999999998,"text":"The remainder, including China, Australia, South Korea, Japan and Brazil, would be hit with a rate of 12.5 per cent."}],[{"start":123.64999999999998,"text":"The US has longstanding provisions controlling the import of goods that are manufactured using forced labour. In its report, the USTR cited rice imported from Myanmar, tobacco from Malawi, and cotton from the western Xinjiang region of China."}],[{"start":139.14999999999998,"text":"The move by the administration comes just weeks ahead of the expiry of a flat 10 per cent tariff that the White House imposed on dozens of countries following the Supreme Court defeat. It used Section 122 of the Trade Act of 1974 but was only valid for 150 days. "}],[{"start":157.04999999999998,"text":"Trade experts and officials hit out at the latest proposed duties, saying the US administration was using the forced labour investigation as a pretext to rebuild the sweeping tariff regime that was struck down by the Supreme Court. "}],[{"start":170.04999999999998,"text":"Todd McClay, New Zealand’s trade minister, told the FT shortly before the latest duties were announced that it was unsurprising that Trump, having campaigned on tariffs, would not seek other measures to reimpose them. "}],[{"start":182.6,"text":"“Since the court found that the tariff regime was illegal, I think it is clear that the US is looking for other ways to put that tariff wall, that regime back in place,” he said."}],[{"start":192.04999999999998,"text":"He added: “We are not involved with any form of forced labour.”"}],[{"start":196.14999999999998,"text":"The International Chamber of Commerce said the decision to use forced labour investigations, including against longstanding US allies, to rebuild the tariff wall would create “significant compliance uncertainty for businesses operating in global supply chains”."}],[{"start":212.54999999999998,"text":"Augustine Lo, a trade expert at law firm Dorsey & Whitney, said the proposed duties were similar to the rates in trade deals the White House struck with certain countries before the Supreme Court struck down the “liberation day” tariffs."}],[{"start":225.49999999999997,"text":"He noted that the 10 per cent rate for the UK matched what it had agreed with the US in a deal last year."}],[{"start":232.29999999999998,"text":"“These proposed tariff rates also track the 10 per cent tariff under Section 122 that Trump imposed after his defeat in court,” he added."}],[{"start":242.39999999999998,"text":"The EU is expected to finally approve its US deal this month. It agreed to pay 15 per cent tariffs on most of its exports, while cutting those on all US industrial products and some agricultural ones to zero. "}],[{"start":264.34999999999997,"text":""}]],"url":"https://audio.ftcn.net.cn/album/a_1780475026_3463.mp3"}