The U.S. Department of Homeland Security on 19 August expanded enforcement of the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act, adding steel, copper, lithium, caustic soda and red dates to the list of “high-priority” sectors subject to heightened inspection at the border. The move is designed to block imports that may be produced with forced labor in China’s Xinjiang region. Customs and Border Protection, which administers the law, has already detained 16,700 shipments valued at about $3.7 billion for review since the act took effect. Roughly 10,000 of those consignments—worth nearly $900 million—have been denied entry. Officials said the new designations could halt billions more in Chinese goods if companies cannot prove their supply chains are free of forced labor; 144 entities are currently listed as being linked to such practices. “The use of slave labor is repulsive, and we will hold Chinese companies accountable,” Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem said in a statement. The action aligns with President Donald Trump’s broader trade and national-security agenda, which includes steep tariffs on Chinese products and efforts to secure domestic sources of critical minerals. “Our country needs copper, and now,” the president said when highlighting the importance of the newly targeted materials. Beijing rejected the allegations of forced labor, calling them politically motivated. The latest U.S. measure heightens trade tensions as the two countries negotiate over tariffs and supply-chain risks tied to strategic commodities.