The United States imposes 10%-12.5% tariffs on 60 economies

Odaily Planet Daily News The Office of the United States Trade Representative (USTR) issued an announcement on the 23rd local time, declaring that pursuant to Section 301 of the Trade Act of 1974, it will impose tariffs ranging from 10% to 12.5% on dozens of countries and regions on the pretext of so-called "forced labor," to replace the soon-to-expire global import tariffs. The new tariffs will take effect at 12:00 PM Eastern Time on the 24th (12:00 PM Beijing time on the 24th). The USTR stated that as the 10% global tariffs expire, tariffs will be levied on 60 economies this time, covering over 99% of U.S. trade volume. A senior U.S. official stated that tariff measures on goods in transit will take effect at 12:01 AM Eastern Time on July 28 (12:01 PM Beijing time on July 28). Imported goods such as fuel, food, and fertilizers will be exempt from the new tariffs; products subject to separate industry-specific tariffs (such as automobiles, metals, and pharmaceuticals) are also not within the levy scope. Furthermore, goods covered by the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) will also receive exemptions. U.S. officials pointed out that the new tariffs will not be imposed on top of the existing steel and aluminum import duties (i.e., the "Section 232" tariffs imposed by Trump last year on national security grounds). (Jin Shi)