US moots 12.5% tariff on India, 53 others over ‘forced labour’

Key points

• Many key export sectors at risk of forced labour: USTR NEW DELHI: In a widely anticipated move, the US Trade Representative Tuesday proposed 12.5% tariff on exports from 54 countries, including India and China, accusing them of failure to prohibit import of goods using forced labour.The announcement came while American officials are in India to discuss the details of the framework agreement, which commerce & industry minister Piyush Goyal had said is close to finalisation.USTR is also expected to release its report on the second probe launched by it – dealing with excess capacity in 16 countries, including India – in what is seen as a move to replace the temporary 10% in place till July 24.In a statement, the commerce & industry ministry said: “India remains engaged with the US on the matter as a part of section 301 proceedings.
• India is also parallelly engaged with the US for...