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The United States has placed two new Chinese companies on its Xinjiang trade blacklist over forced labor charges. Just a week ago, Beijing retaliated over accusations of human rights abuses in the region and “discriminatory measures” related to U.S. companies.
Department of Homeland Security announced on wednesday Chinese steelmaker and an artificial sweetener maker to be listed under Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention ActUFLPA) entity list.
The list now includes 75 entitiesbans the import of products manufactured in whole or in part in China's Xinjiang Uyghur region on the grounds that forced labor from China's Uyghurs and other ethnic minorities is used in their manufacturing process.
“Today's action reaffirms our commitment to eliminating forced labor from U.S. supply chains and upholding human rights values for all of us,” Robert Silvers, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security's undersecretary for policy, said in a statement. ”
These companies are the first in their respective industries to be included on the list. Many of the companies that joined before are involved in Xinjiang's large cotton and textile industry.
“No industry is off limits. We will continue to identify entities across industries and hold accountable those who seek to profit from exploitation and abuse,” Silvers said.
The UFLPA was signed into law in December 2021 after the United States claimed there was growing evidence that the Chinese government detention and exploitation Over the years, the Uyghurs, a predominantly Muslim population, and other ethnic and religious minorities in Xinjiang have been targeted.
China continues deny such accusations. Amid deteriorating relations between China and the United States, the Entity List has become another factor in the decoupling of trade between the world's two largest economies.
Last week, Beijing launched a new effort to fight back against the import ban, announcing an investigation into U.S. companies that own fashion brands Tommy Hilfiger and Calvin Klein for allegedly taking “discriminatory measures” against Xinjiang cotton companies.
The group (PVH) has operations in the United States and China and is among a growing number of foreign companies trying to distance themselves from alleged forced labor practices in Xinjiang.
according to state mediaChina's Ministry of Commerce suspects that the company “violated the principles of normal market transactions and boycotted cotton and other products from Xinjiang without factual basis.”
PVH has 30 days to respond to officials or risk being added to China's list of “unreliable entities,” which could lead to more penalties and restrictions. The company, which has significant operations in China and the United States, told CNBC it was in contact with Chinese authorities.
“As a matter of company policy, PVH strictly abides by all relevant laws and regulations in all countries and regions in which we do business,” the company said, adding that it would “respond in accordance with relevant regulations.”
China has previously placed U.S. companies such as defense contractors Lockheed Martin Corp. and Raytheon Co. on its entity list over their dealings and operations in Taiwan.
this European Union Approved new laws banning the use of forced labor to make products and requiring large companies to conduct human rights and environmental audits of overseas suppliers. Taiwan also has reportedly being considered Its own bill on forced labor, similar to the UFLPA.
—CNBC’s Evelyn Cheng contributed to this report.