Decoded: How could US tariff plans linked to forced labour investigations affect Sri Lanka?

Sri Lanka will face fresh tariff troubles this year with its exports to its top export market - the United States. The United States has proposed a new tariff of up to 12.5% on imports from Sri Lanka and 59 other economies following investigations into whether countries have adequately prohibited imports produced using forced labour.

This means that, according to the US investigation, Sri Lanka has not taken adequate steps to prevent goods that maybe produced using forced labour from being imported to Sri Lanka. Where the US feels this is the case, the United States Trade Representative is empowered to take action to correct such problems.

This proposal is not yet finalised and follows repeated attempts by the Trump administration to disrupt trade flows with the use of tariffs. Last year, President Trump's 'Liberation Day' tariff announcement shocked the global economy, but were later struck down by the US Supreme Courts as being unconstitutional. This new proposal suggests that the Trump administration is looking for alternate legal paths to impose its tariff.

Refer the news article we decoded here: https://abcnews.com/US/wireStory/us-plans-extra-tariffs-10-trading-partners-after-133541644