{"id":862476,"date":"2026-06-03T20:00:11","date_gmt":"2026-06-03T18:00:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/?p=862476"},"modified":"2026-06-03T20:04:32","modified_gmt":"2026-06-03T18:04:32","slug":"united-states-bringing-more-tariff-pain-for-south-africa-following-investigation","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/government\/862476\/united-states-bringing-more-tariff-pain-for-south-africa-following-investigation\/","title":{"rendered":"United States bringing more tariff pain for South Africa following investigation"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

The United States Trade Representative is proposing new tariffs on South Africa and other countries, following a Section 301 investigation launched earlier this year.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Section 301 of the United States Trade Act of 1974 is designed to address unfair foreign practices affecting US commerce.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The section may be used to respond to \u201cunjustifiable, unreasonable, or discriminatory foreign government practices\u201d that burden or restrict US commerce.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In mid-March 2026<\/strong><\/a>, the US Trade Representative announced such an investigation would take place, specifically looking at 60 countries, including South Africa.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The office made findings against all 60 countries.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

An investigation under Section 301(b) of the Trade Act examines whether the acts, policies, or practices of a foreign country are unreasonable or discriminatory and burden or restrict US commerce.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

However, in this case, the administration was specifically looking at trade practices related to forced labour.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

According to the representative, the office wanted to determine whether the economies’ acts, policies, and practices failed to impose and enforce effectively a prohibition on the importation of goods produced with forced labour.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

“The failure of our most important trading partners to address the importation of goods made with forced labour is unacceptable,” it said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

“This creates a dynamic where American workers are forced to compete globally on an unlevel playing field.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The office said that the US would no longer tolerate the disparity.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In its findings for South Africa, specifically, the Trade Representative found that South Africa failed to impose and effectively enforce a labour import prohibition.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

“We found that the failure to impose and effectively enforce a forced labour import prohibition is unreasonable,” it said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

“We found that the failure to impose and effectively enforce a forced labour import prohibition burdens or restricts US commerce.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n

More tariffs are coming<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
\"\"<\/a>
US Trade Representative Jamison Greer<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

The office said that some comments suggested that South Africa\u2019s existing labour laws, anti-trafficking laws, and customs laws provided a legal framework for South Africa to prohibit the importation of goods produced with forced labour.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

However, it insisted that a legal framework that could provide a basis for a forced labour import prohibition was distinct from a legal measure that forbids the importation of goods produced with forced labour.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

“For the foregoing reasons, the results of this investigation indicate that the acts, policies and practices of South Africa related to the failure to impose and effectively enforce a forced labour import prohibition are unreasonable and burden or restrict US commerce,” it said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Following the determinations in its investigations, the US Trade Representative has proposed “responsive action” for public comment in the United States.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The proposed action includes additional duties on all products of the investigated economies, with some products exempted.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Hearings will be held on 7 July 2026.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The full report can be read below:<\/p>\n\n\n\n