The United States on Thursday, 23 July, 2026 announced new tariffs on imports from 60 economies, including Nigeria, over what it described as their failure to prohibit the importation of goods produced with forced labour.
The measures, announced by the Office of the United States Trade Representative on Thursday, imposed tariffs of either 10 per cent or 12.5 per cent, depending on each country’s forced labour import policies.
According to the USTR, the decision followed investigations launched in May 2026 under Section 301 of the Trade Act into 60 of the United States’ largest trading partners.
The agency said it received more than 1,600 public submissions, held hearings involving over 100 witnesses, and consulted more than 45 governments before announcing the tariffs.
Nigeria is among the countries that will face a 12.5 per cent tariff, while some that USTR deems have adopted or committed to implement bans on imports linked to forced labour will attract a lower 10 per cent rate.
Below is the full list of countries and territories affected by the new US tariffs:
Country/Territory Tariff (%)
Algeria 12.5
Angola 12.5
Argentina 10
Australia 12.5
Bahrain 12.5
Bangladesh 10
Brazil 12.5
Cambodia 10
Canada 10
Chile 12.5
China 12.5
Colombia 12.5
Costa Rica 12.5
Dominican Republic 12.5
Ecuador 10
Egypt 12.5
El Salvador 10
European Union* 10
Guatemala 10
Guyana 12.5
Honduras 10
Hong Kong 12.5
India 10
Indonesia 10
Iraq 12.5
Israel 12.5
Japan* 12.5
Jordan 10
Kazakhstan 12.5
Kuwait 12.5
Libya 12.5
Malaysia 10
Mexico 10
Morocco 12.5
New Zealand 12.5
Nicaragua 12.5
Nigeria 12.5
Norway 12.5
Oman 12.5
Pakistan 10
Peru 12.5
Philippines 12.5
Qatar 12.5
Russia 12.5
Saudi Arabia 12.5
Singapore 12.5
South Africa 12.5
South Korea* 12.5
Sri Lanka 10
Switzerland* 12.5
Taiwan* 10
Thailand 12.5
The Bahamas 12.5
Trinidad and Tobago 10
Turkey 12.5
United Arab Emirates 12.5
United Kingdom 10
Uruguay 12.5
Venezuela 12.5
Vietnam 12.5
For the European Union, Japan, South Korea, Switzerland and Taiwan, the tariffs are applied net of the Most-Favoured-Nation (MFN) rate, according to the USTR.
Source: The Punch online
