SINGAPORE, March 14 — Singapore’s Ministry of Trade and Industry (MTI) said it will engage the Office of the United States Trade Representative (USTR) after being included in a second trade investigation into imports allegedly linked to forced labour.

MTI said it will seek clarification from the USTR on Singapore’s data and the scope of the investigations. 

The USTR announced on March 12 that about 60 economies – including Singapore and Malaysia – are being investigated under Section 301 of the Trade Act over alleged failures to prohibit the importation of goods made with forced labour.

The first probe, announced earlier in the week, focuses on alleged excess industrial capacity in sectors such as electronics, machinery and steel and could pave the way for tariffs on imports if the US finds evidence of unfair trade practices, The Straits Times reported.

The forced labour enquiry examines whether countries have adopted and enforced bans on imports linked to forced labour and how such failures might impact US workers and industries.

Singapore and Malaysia join other major trading partners named in the forced labour investigation, including Australia, Japan, South Korea, Cambodia, Indonesia, the Philippines, Thailand and Vietnam. 

Malaysia’s government has also said it will respond to USTR on the forced labour issue, as well as another probe into alleged structural excess manufacturing capacity affecting multiple sectors.