Trump administration launches investigation into countries, including India, over alleged ‘unfair trade practice’

WASHINGTON: The Donald Trump administration has initiated fresh investigations into alleged “unfair trade practice” by 16 major trading partners, including India, China and Bangladesh. The move aims to reinstate tariff pressure following a US Supreme Court ruling last month that declared previous levies illegal.

These inquiries are being carried out under Section 301 of the Trade Act of 1974. This legislation grants the US Trade Representative the authority to enforce tariffs or other punitive actions against nations found to be using unfair trade practices.

US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer indicated that the investigations could result in new tariffs being applied to China, the European Union, India, Japan, South Korea, and Mexico by the coming summer. The “excess capacity” probe also extends to several other partners, including Taiwan, Vietnam, Thailand, Malaysia, Cambodia, Singapore, Indonesia, Bangladesh, Switzerland, and Norway.

Notably, Canada, the second-largest trading partner of the US, was excluded from the list. Greer explained to reporters during a conference call that the “investigations will focus on economies that we have evidence appears to exhibit structural excess capacity and production in various manufacturing sectors, such as through larger persistent trade surpluses or underutilised or unused capacity”.

In addition to the capacity probe, Greer announced he would launch a separate investigation on Thursday under Section 301. This second probe aims to prohibit US imports of products manufactured using forced labour and is expected to cover over 60 nations.

While the US has previously targeted solar panels and other commodities from China’s Xinjiang region under the Uyghur Forced Labour Protection Act, this new inquiry could broaden such restrictions to other countries. Greer expressed a desire for international partners to adopt similar bans against forced labour goods, referencing standards in a nearly century-old trade law.

Washington has consistently alleged that Chinese officials have set up labour camps for ethnic Uyghur and other Muslim groups in the western region; however, Beijing continues to deny any claims of mistreatment. Greer says his department intends to wrap up the Section 301 probes, including any “proposed remedies,” before the temporary tariffs introduced by Trump in late February expire this July.

Following the Supreme Court’s February 20 decision to strike down global tariffs, Trump utilised Section 122 of the Trade Act of 1974 to implement a 10 per cent tariff for a 150-day period. The timeline for the capacity investigation is set to be rapid, with public feedback welcomed until April 15 and a public hearing scheduled for approximately May 5.

These proceedings provide the Trump administration with a mechanism to re-establish a “credible tariff threat” to ensure trading partners remain at the negotiating table. This strategy seeks to enforce trade agreements originally designed to lower the higher rates previously imposed under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act.

Greer noted that these measures had been long anticipated and should not shock international partners. He urged nations to adhere to their existing agreements, though he did not guarantee that doing so would make them immune to all new Section 301 tariffs.

Emphasising the President’s resolve, Greer stated that Trump “will find a way to deal with unfair trading practices. He’ll find a way to get our trade deficit down. He’ll find a way to protect US manufacturing. We have a lot of tools to do it”. (ANI)