Imposed citing forced labour concerns, the levies replace a temporary global duty brought in after the US Supreme Court struck down tariffs in February.

The US has imposed new tariffs on 60 trading partners in the latest escalation in the trade war reignited by US President Donald Trump when he returned to office last year. Those targeted, including the UK, China and the European Union, will face a tariff of 10% to 12.5% on all goods, accounting for almost all American imports. The tariffs, which replace an identical levy which expires on Friday, are based on claims key economic partners have failed to properly tackle forced labour. But US trade expert Caroline Freund said the move is "not about forced labour" but that Trump is simply "looking for a legal reason to put the tariffs in". The US Supreme Court had ruled earlier this year that many of the tariffs imposed globally under emergency powers were illegally enacted. The 10%-12.5% duties on imports were proposed last month by the White House and over concerns they were not doing enough to tackle forced labour. "Today's action will begin to correct what is both a human rights abuse and distortive trade practice to improve the welfare of workers everywhere," US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer said. The new duties apply to the top 60 US trade partners covering 99.4% of US imports, it added.