Australia hit with 12.5 per cent tariff by Donald Trump - as US plans levies on dozens of trade partners

By KYLIE STEVENS, SENIOR BREAKING NEWS REPORTER, AUSTRALIA Published: 22:41, 23 July 2026 | Updated: 22:59, 23 July 2026 Australia has been hit with a new 12.5 per cent tariff by the Trump administration as part of the US President's latest series of levies on trading partners.  The new tariff will take effect within hours at 2.01pm AEST, just as temporary 10 per cent worldwide tariffs expire. The office of the US trade representative Jamieson Greer published a statement seen by the Australian Financial Review, alleging Australia had 'inadequately enforced bans on goods produced by forced labour'. 'Based on the findings in the investigation of Australia, considering the public comments, testimony, and the advice of the section 301 committee, as well as the advice of advisory committees, and in accordance with the specific direction of the president, the trade representative has determined to impose 12.5 per cent tariffs on products of Australia,' the statement said. Deputy Prime Minister Richard Marles said that the new levies 'make no sense', adding that Australia has 'some of the strongest laws in the world' to combat the entry of goods made with forced labor. 'We obviously are supportive of an open global trading system. That's actually what has seen an enormous rise in productivity and prosperity around the world,' Marles told ABC Radio National on Friday. 'In relation to our trading relationship with the United States, the US Australia-US Free Trade Agreement has been really important in terms of promoting jobs in both countries and providing for freer trade and lower prices between both countries.' Australia is among 60 trading partners impacted by the new US tariffs. Others include the UK, the European Union, Canada, Japan, and India. Prime Minister Anthony Albanese previously described the flagged tariffs as unwarranted and would only push up prices for consumers in the US. 'There is an ideological disagreement where the United States administration has broken with what was a decades-long understanding that tariffs are not positive for the country that is imposing them,' he said. Australia has been hit with a new 12.5 per cent tariff by the Trump administration as part of US President's latest series of levies on trading partners