Sri Lanka has been included among countries facing proposed new U.S. import tariffs after the Trump administration accused dozens of trading partners of failing to adequately prevent goods made with forced labour from entering their markets.
Under the proposal unveiled Tuesday by the Office of the United States Trade Representative (USTR), Sri Lanka would be subject to an additional 12.5% duty on exports to the United States.
The move forms part of a wider trade action targeting 60 economies under a Section 301 investigation into alleged unfair trade practices linked to forced labour imports.
According to the USTR, 54 economies, including Sri Lanka, were found to have failed to establish prohibitions against goods produced using forced labour, while six others were cited for weak enforcement of existing measures.
The affected list spans major U.S. trading partners including China, India, Japan, South Korea, the United Kingdom, the European Union, Canada, Mexico, Australia, Brazil, and South Africa, alongside Sri Lanka and dozens of other economies.
The latest proposal comes as the Trump administration seeks to reconstruct its emergency tariff framework after parts of its earlier tariff regime were struck down by a U.S. Supreme Court ruling in February.
A separate textile mechanism has also been proposed, allowing limited apparel and textile imports to enter at reduced tariff rates despite the broader tariff increases.
United States Trade Representative Jamieson Greer said countries’ failure to address forced labour-linked imports had created unfair competition for American workers.
“This creates a dynamic where American workers are forced to compete globally on an uneven playing field,” Greer said, adding that the United States “will no longer tolerate this disparity.”
