China opposes US 'forced labour' tariffs, calls for them to be cancelled

China's commerce ministry said on Monday that new U.S. tariffs imposed on Chinese goods over alleged forced labour were unjustified and amounted to protectionism, and urged Washington to remove them.

On Friday, the United States imposed new tariffs of 10% and 12.5% on goods from 60 trading partners, including the EU and China, alleging those countries failed to curb imports made by forced labour. China was assigned a 12.5% rate.

The new U.S. duties could risk undermining a fragile trade truce reached between the world's two largest economies last year and came as the two sides prepare for a possible visit to the U.S. by Chinese President Xi Jinping in September.

The commerce ministry in a statement accused Washington of long manipulating the issue of forced labour, calling the new tariffs a typical act of unilateralism and protectionism, but also signalled willingness to continue dialogue "based on mutual respect, equality and mutual benefit" to address concerns.

"This time, it (Washington) has again initiated a Section 301 investigation and imposed unilateral tariffs on the grounds of 'forced labour,' which is a typical act of unilateralism and protectionism, and China firmly opposes it," the ministry said.

"China has consistently opposed forced labour and has established a comprehensive system of labour laws and regulations to resolutely prevent and combat forced labour practices. In contrast, the U.S. has not only failed to ratify the 1930 Forced Labour Convention, but has also long manipulated the issue of "forced labour"".

It said Washington had pledged during trade talks that replacement tariffs on Chinese goods would not exceed 20%, noting that the new 12.5% tariff imposed under the forced-labour probe remained within that limit.

"China urges the U.S. to correct its erroneous practices and completely remove the relevant unilateral tariff measures," the ministry said.