WASHINGTON - The Trump administration has put forward plans to apply tariffs of 10 percent or higher on goods from numerous major trading partners after an inquiry into imports suspected of involving forced labor.

A report issued early Wednesday by the U.S. Trade Representative indicated that Canada, Mexico, Taiwan, the United Kingdom and several additional nations would encounter 10 percent extra tariffs for reportedly not upholding a ban on forced labor imports.

An extra 12.5 percent tariff would apply to shipments from China, Japan, India, South Korea, Brazil, Switzerland and many other countries.

"The failure of our most important trading partners to address the importation of goods made with forced labor is unacceptable. This creates a dynamic where American workers are forced to compete globally on an unlevel playing field," USTR Ambassador Jamieson Greer said in a statement.

He further noted that "each of our trading partners must do more to ensure that trade does not perversely encourage and entrench forced labor globally."

This new round of tariffs is expected to disturb important trading partners already affected by multiple tariff rounds since President Donald Trump took office again early last year.

Just two weeks earlier, the European Union finalized a tariff agreement with the United States that limits duties on most EU exports to 15 percent. The pact came after extensive discussions among the EU's 27 members and warnings from European lawmakers about potentially rejecting the deal.

Trump recently concluded a trip to China during which he and leader Xi Jinping explored greater market access for U.S. firms in China along with increased Chinese investment in American sectors. The leaders consented to establish separate boards for trade and investment, although specifics remained limited.

The proposed tariffs would not begin right away. They remain open to public comment and further review.

The probe into claims of inadequate efforts to block imports of goods tied to forced labor relied on Section 301 of the Trade Act of 1974. This approach would allow Trump to bypass restrictions on tariffs set by the Supreme Court.

The report described forced labor as "work or service exacted from a person under the menace of any penalty for its nonperformance and for which the worker does not offer himself voluntarily."

The Supreme Court determined in February that Trump had exceeded his powers by invoking a separate statute, the International Emergency Economic Powers Act of 1977, to enact broad tariffs against U.S. trading partners.

The Trump administration indicated it would challenge a federal judge's ruling that would make all companies which paid duties on those prior tariffs eligible for refunds.

Earlier this week the administration separately suggested 25 percent tariffs on imports from Brazil, alleging that the world's tenth-largest economy uses trade practices that are "unreasonable" and that "burden or restrict U.S. commerce."

The USTR noted its review found Brazil maintained weak anti-corruption measures and imposed its own unfair tariffs, among other issues.