BANGKOK (AP) — U.S. President Donald Trump’s latest set of tariffs drew immediate objections from America’s trading partners including China and Japan, with Australia’s trade minister slamming them as “completely unjustified” on Friday.
The administration announced tariffs of 10% to 12.5% on 60 economies late Thursday, saying the countries had failed to adequately enforce a ban on goods made with forced labor.
The new tariffs took effect just as stopgap levies Trump imposed after a stinging defeat at the Supreme Court expired at 12:01 a.m. Friday.
Countries object to what they call unfounded labor claims
Australian Trade Minister Don Farrell rejected claims linking Australia, a major exporter of beef, gold and copper, to modern slavery and raising the tariff on its exports to the U.S. to 12.5% from the 10% level imposed after Trump’s “Liberation Day” hikes last year.