The Trump administration announced it will step up scrutiny of imports of steel, copper, lithium, and other materials from China to enforce a US ban on goods allegedly produced with forced labor in the Xinjiang region, Bloomberg reports.
The update, part of the annual enforcement review under the four-year-old Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act, highlights “high-priority sectors” targeted for additional oversight. The move aligns with Trump’s broader trade objectives, including lowering the US trade deficit with China and pressuring Beijing to curb shipments of fentanyl and precursor chemicals.
“America has a moral, economic, and national security duty to eradicate threats that endanger our nation’s prosperity, including unfair trade practices that disadvantage the American people and stifle our economic growth,” Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem said in a statement.
The announcement comes even as Trump seeks to improve relations with Chinese President Xi Jinping. Last week, Trump extended a pause on higher tariffs on Chinese goods for 90 days while pursuing an in-person meeting with Xi.
Under the 2021 law, US authorities assume any product made, even partially, in Xinjiang involves forced labor and is barred from import. Companies can seek exemptions if they provide “clear and convincing evidence” that forced labor was not used.
The measure targets alleged repression of Uyghurs and other minorities in Xinjiang, which Beijing denies. The law initially focused on apparel, cotton, tomatoes, and silica-based products, including polysilicon. Under President Biden, enforcement expanded to aluminum, polyvinyl chloride, and seafood.
Trump’s latest update adds steel, copper, lithium, red dates, and caustic soda to the high-priority list. US imports of copper from China remain limited, while steel imports totaled roughly 470,000 tons in 2024, about 0.5% of domestic consumption, according to the Commerce Department.
