G20 countries divided over US call to curb excess industrial capacity
The United States, this year's G20 chair, issued a statement a day after a trade meeting in Milwaukee that drew support from only Mexico and Argentina. The statement called for more work and cooperation to eliminate goods produced with forced labour from supply chains. The Trump administration has imposed tariffs of 10 per cent or 12.5 per cent on goods from 59 countries and the European Union over allegations of inadequate enforcement of forced labour bans, and USTR is conducting a second "Section 301" tariff investigation into 16 trading partners showing signs of excess industrial capacity.
Why it matters: It shows how far trade and industrial policy has become a source of division among G20 members, with tariff measures and investigations pursued by the chairing state against a background of near-universal non-endorsement.