President Trump enacts a 10% global tariff following a Supreme Court rebuke on his trade powers, with exemptions for some sectors and partners.
WASHINGTON: President Donald Trump imposed an additional 10% tariff on all US imports. This move came hours after the Supreme Court delivered a major legal rebuke to his use of emergency powers for trade policy.
The new duty is slated to take effect for 150 days. A White House factsheet noted exemptions for sectors under separate probes and goods entering under the US-Mexico-Canada agreement.
US trading partners with existing tariff deals will now also face the flat 10% rate. A White House official told AFP the administration would later seek ways to implement “more appropriate or pre-negotiated tariff rates.”
Earlier, the conservative-majority Supreme Court ruled six to three that a 1977 law “does not authorize the President to impose tariffs.” Trump had relied on this law to slap sudden rates on individual countries.
Trump responded furiously to the ruling. “I’m ashamed of certain members of the court, absolutely ashamed, for not having the courage to do what’s right for our country,” he told reporters.
He insisted the ruling left him “more powerful.” Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said the alternative tariff method “will result in virtually unchanged tariff revenue in 2026.”
The ruling marked Trump’s biggest defeat at the Supreme Court since returning to office. It did not impact his separate sector-specific duties on steel, aluminum and other goods.
Chief Justice John Roberts stated the 1977 law “contains no reference to tariffs or duties.” Business groups largely cheered the ruling for providing certainty.
The court did not address whether companies would receive refunds for tariffs deemed unlawful. Trump said he expected years of litigation on the issue.
The Penn Wharton Budget Model projected the decision could generate up to USD 175 billion in refunds. California Governor Gavin Newsom said Americans deserved refunds from the “illegal cash grab.”
Senator Elizabeth Warren cautioned there was “no legal mechanism for consumers and many small businesses to recoup the money.” The Budget Lab at Yale University estimates the average effective tariff rate is now 9.1%.
Close US trading partners including the EU and Britain said they were studying the decision. Canada said the Supreme Court showed the levies were “unjustified.”
French President Emmanuel Macron hailed “the existence of checks and balances in democracies.” He added that “a conciliatory approach” was necessary for trade.
