The U.S has increased the tariff on Australian goods to 12.5%, as it promised, because Australia has not done enough (anything?) to address forced labour in countries like China.

Canada, Britain, India, Malaysia and Argentina will pay only 10%.

The U.S rigidly enforces bans and strictures on countries using forced labour, so countries like Australia have an unfair trade advantage, according to the U.S.

The Deputy Prime Minister huffed and puffed about Australia having some of the toughest laws on forced labour etc. etc. Not so.

Justine Nolan, Director of the Australian Human Rights Institute, University of NSW, says Australia's laws are definitely not among the strongest in the world.

Only last week, the government was talking about doing better on this matter, including the imposition of criminal charges against Australian importers bringing in goods produced by forced labour.

If this was done, it would make a significant difference, according to Nolan.

Trump has worse treatment in store for the EU, following its fining of Google for its breach of the Digital Markets Act. He doesn't like American companies being treated like that by an EU that has been bludging off America for ever. He will not allow them to use America as a piggybank any longer. He has consistently warned the EU about the kind of contact that he describes as “illegal and highly unethical”. A substantial tariff will be imposed at “earliest possible moment”.

Some people are as delusional as Daffy Donald.

"The U.S has increased the tariff on Australian goods to 12.5%, as it promised, because Australia has not done enough (anything?) to address forced labour in countries like China." So, Trumps launched a fight for the rights of labour in China, very good, excellent, should be commended. Those nasty countries like Australia who import goods made in China are slapped with a big fat tariff!

"The U.S rigidly enforces bans and strictures on countries using forced labour, (like China) so countries like Australia have an unfair trade advantage, according to the U.S (According to Daffy Donald)" How noble of America to forgo billions of dollars in cheap imports from China just to protect the rights of Chinese workers. It would be wonderful if it was true.

This whole American tariff crap falls apart when you realise the self-rightest Americans import over $250 billion annually in cheap Chinese manufacturer goods, for their own consumer market. Who cares about slave labour say Daffy Donald, Americans need and deserve their cheap slave labour made toasters from China. Whose kidding who?

This is a man commanding an empire whose economy is on the brink and is demanding tributes and protection money.

Since some here seem to not understand the issue.... the US position is that countries should have policies to stop importing goods made by Chinese slave labour. Goods made by normal everyday Chinese wages workers are not targeted and can be freely imported without US sanction.

The problem for the usual suspects is that they don't want to recognise that there is slave labour in the 'workers paradise' of the CCP and therefore don't understand the point of the tariffs.

Any number of human rights groups and independent studies have demonstrated the use of slave (mainly Uighur)labour to make export products. But if you don't recognise the genocide that is being perpetrated on the Uighurs (and other minorities in the Han empire)then you can't logically recognise the slave labour.

Its got absolutely nothing to do with slave labour at all,
This is all just part of the U.S. war on multipolarism.
Just like the war in Ukraine against Russia,
just like the war against Iran in the M/E.
and just like the war against China.