India awaits US' final action in forced labour trade probe

WASHINGTON: The US will release its final action on Section 301 investigations into 60 trading partners, including India, over alleged failures to curb imports made with forced labour as early as Thursday, US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer said on Wednesday.

Greer told the Senate Finance Committee that the investigations examined the top 60 US trading partners for failing to adopt and effectively enforce import bans on goods produced with forced labour.

"As soon as tomorrow, USTR will release its final responsive action on its Section 301 investigation of our top 60 trading partners' failure to address international trade in forced goods at their borders," he said.


Last month, the USTR proposed additional tariffs of 10% and 12.5% on trading partners, depending on the strength of their measures to tackle forced-labour imports.

Greer said the agency received more than 1,600 public comments and heard testimony from 107 witnesses before finalising its response.

The USTR is also investigating structural excess capacity in more than a dozen countries, with preliminary findings still pending.