Kuala lumpur: Malaysia, along with Cambodia and Indonesia, is facing a 10 percent tariff under the United States' new Section 301 tariffs. This measure follows a failure to impose and effectively enforce rules against the importation of goods produced with forced labour.

According to BERNAMA News Agency, US Trade Representative Ambassador Jamieson Greer announced this action in Washington, stating that it is being taken at the direction of President Donald Trump. The tariffs are being imposed on 60 economies for their failure to effectively combat forced labour in their import practices.

Greer highlighted that the decision comes after comprehensive investigations by the Office of the USTR. These investigations included two rounds of public hearings and the review of over 2,100 public comments. There was also engagement with trading partners to address these issues. Greer emphasized that this action is aimed at improving workers' welfare globally and addressing human rights abuses and unfair trade practices.

The USTR has specified that economies imposing a forced labour import prohibition or committing to such measures through an Agreement on Reciprocal Trade (ART) will face a 10 percent tariff rate. This rate applies net of a product's most-favoured-nation (MFN) duty. Other economies will face a 12.5 percent tariff under the same conditions.

Additionally, the USTR plans to establish tariff rate quotas for Bangladesh, Cambodia, Indonesia, and Malaysia. These quotas are based on each economy's importation of US inputs, with the aim of encouraging the importation of US cotton and textile goods to reduce reliance on inputs potentially produced with forced labour.