US allegations of forced labor refuted

Asian countries, including Singapore and Vietnam, rejected the allegations of "forced labor" made by the United States as a pretext to impose additional tariffs of 10-12.5 percent on 60 economies.

While the short-term impact of the proposed tariffs may not be significant, experts said Asian countries and regions should be prepared as the US is rebuilding its tariff architecture to gain leverage for negotiations.

The conclusions of an investigation into forced labor practices by the Office of the United States Trade Representative, or USTR, do "not accurately reflect the reality and Vietnam's efforts in preventing and mitigating forced labor", said Pham Thu Hang, spokeswoman for Vietnam's Foreign Ministry, on Thursday.

Her remarks came after the USTR said on Tuesday that it would impose 10-12.5 percent tariffs on imports from 60 trading partners that it concluded had failed to impose and effectively enforce a prohibition on imports of goods made with forced labor under Section 301 of the Trade Act.

The economies listed include major Asian economies, such as China, Japan, the Republic of Korea, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam.

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Mao Ning firmly rejected the remarks and said the threat was being used "as a pretext for political manipulation" on Wednesday.

Singapore's Ministry of Trade and Industry said on Thursday that about one-third of the city-state's domestic exports to the US could be affected by the potential new tariffs, according to The Straits Times.

"Singapore does not condone the use of forced labor in supply chains and has a comprehensive framework to enforce against such illegal practices within our borders," the ministry said, adding that there is no evidence of Singapore's involvement in supply chains linked to forced labor.

Unjustified probe

India, which is working on a trade agreement with the US, also dismissed the allegation by the US and called the probe unjustified, according to The Times of India.

The ROK said it would ensure the balance of interests in existing bilateral tariff agreements is protected and would actively engage in the comment submission process and the public hearing scheduled for July.

Industry Ministry Kim Jung-Kwan said on Thursday that he received confirmation from the US side that the ROK will not face higher tariffs than listed in the agreement.

In a macro note on Friday, the Global Economics and Markets Research team of the United Overseas Bank in Singapore said the US is using Section 301 as a tariff tool to rebuild the tariff wall after the US Supreme Court struck down President Donald Trump's "reciprocal" tariffs.

"This signals a deliberate strategy to restore long-term flexibility in tariff policy and reassert US leverage in global trade," the note said, adding that the new tariff architecture being built is more durable with greater room for country differentiation, policy escalation and leverage for negotiations.

Though the short-term impact may be limited due to the scale of the additional tariffs, Suan Teck Kin, UOB's head of research and executive director for global economics and markets research, told China Daily that the medium- and long-term signal of US trade policy could be more consequential for economies and exporters from the Asian region.

Noting there are also pending probes related to structural excess capacity and potential Section 232-related issues in semiconductor actions, Suan, the lead author of the note, said all Asian countries targeted by the US are collectively vulnerable.

"I think it would further encourage companies to continue to diversify their sales or exports to non-US markets, which are not subject to the sort of US tariff threats or risks," said Suan.