US G20 chair faces isolation on forced labour supply chain statement as most countries reject US-led initiative

The US, this year’s G20 chair, issued the statement a day after a trade meeting in Milwaukee that revealed that only two countries – Mexico and Argentina – signed on to a US-led statement calling for more work and cooperation to eliminate goods produced with forced labour from supply chains.

The rejection from the vast majority of G20 countries follows the Trump administration’s imposition of tariffs of 10 per cent or 12.5 per cent on goods from 59 countries and the European Union over allegations that they fail to adequately enforce bans on forced labour.

USTR is also conducting a second “Section 301” tariff investigation into 16 trading partners that show signs of excess industrial capacity. The probe is widely ⁠expected to lead to new duties in coming months.