RIO DE JANEIRO, July 23 (Xinhua) -- Brazil on Thursday rejected a U.S. decision to impose a 12.5-percent tariff on Brazilian products following a Section 301 trade investigation into 60 economies, saying it will pursue dispute settlement at the WTO.

Calling the Section 301 trade investigation "arbitrary and unjustified," the Brazilian government said the United States had used forced labor as a pretext for protectionist trade policy, and had "chosen to manipulate an issue of great importance to human rights and the struggles of workers worldwide," even though Brazil had submitted documents and explanations on its legislation and enforcement mechanisms during the investigation.

Brazil said it would immediately initiate procedures to invoke the response mechanisms under its "Reciprocity Law" and bring the matter before the WTO dispute settlement mechanism.

The U.S. tariffs, imposed on dozens of markets over allegations of lax enforcement of forced labor bans, will take effect on Friday. ■