US trade envoy says acting 'soon' on new tariffs as 10% levy to expire

WASHINGTON: US trade envoy Jamieson Greer said Tuesday that there would be “action soon” regarding new tariffs on dozens of countries, with President Donald Trump’s temporary global levy due to expire this week.

The Trump administration has readied fresh tariffs targeting 60 trading partners over their alleged failures to act against forced labor, as officials push to rebuild the US leader’s trade agenda after legal setbacks.

“The US has laws to prohibit trading goods with forced labor. Other countries, most don’t have a law, those that do don’t really enforce it,” Greer told CNBC.

“We expect to see some action soon,” he added, although adding that he cannot specify a timeline.

While Trump imposed a 10-percent global duty this year after a swath of his tariffs were struck down by the Supreme Court in February, this levy expires Friday.

Analysts expect that the planned tariffs over forced labor concerns – which range between 10 percent and 12.5 percent – would replace the temporary duties.

Greer added Tuesday that the new action will cover the vast majority of US trade.

But the moves could reignite tensions with trading partners. The European Union, China, Taiwan, Vietnam and Japan are all among targeted economies.

The move also comes as Washington last week announced a 25-percent tariff on various Brazilian products, while setting a 50-percent duty on many Canadian goods.

Besides the probes on forced labor, separate US investigations into excess manufacturing capacity are also ongoing and could lead to further action.