US Court blocks Trump’s major tariffs, citing overreach of authority, not legally justified

NEW YORK: A US federal court on Wednesday (local time) ruled against US President Donald Trump’s large-scale imposition of sweeping tariffs, deeming that this move exceeds his legal authority and that it would affect a wide range of imported goods, as reported by CNN.

The decision, handed down by the US Court of International Trade in Manhattan, determined that the tariffs — including those introduced under emergency economic powers — were unlawful; however, the Trump administration has already filed an appeal, leaving the future of the tariffs uncertain, CNN reported.

As per CNN, the court’s decision halts the enforcement of most of Trump’s tariffs, including the 30 per cent duties on Chinese imports, 25 per cent on certain goods from Mexico and Canada, and a general 10 per cent tariff on many other imports. However, the ruling does not apply to tariffs on autos, steel, and aluminium, which were enacted under a different law of the US Trade Expansion Act.

The case was brought by Liberty Justice Centre on behalf of several small businesses, including wine importer VOS Selections, which claimed the tariffs caused serious financial harm. A separate lawsuit filed by twelve Democratic-led states was also decided in the same ruling.

As per CNN, the panel of judges unanimously found that Trump’s use of the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) to impose the tariffs was not legally justified.

The IEEPA, they noted, does not explicitly allow the president to implement tariffs, and using it for that purpose could represent an unconstitutional transfer of congressional authority.

“IEEPA does not authorise any of the worldwide, retaliatory, or trafficking tariff orders… The worldwide and retaliatory tariff orders exceed any authority granted to the President by IEEPA to regulate importation by means of tariffs. The trafficking tariffs fail because they do not deal with the threats set forth in those orders,” the panel of judges said, as quoted by CNN.

The court issued a permanent injunction against the tariffs, giving the government 10 days to respond. If the ruling stands after appeal, it could effectively end the bulk of Trump’s tariff policies before final trade agreements with affected countries are completed.

Meanwhile, US markets responded positively to the news, with major stock index futures rising significantly in after-hours trading, as reported by CNN.

Earlier on April 2, the US President introduced his “reciprocal” tariffs, placing substantial duties on imports from some of the United States’ key trading partners. However, just a week later, on April 9, he paused the implementation for 90 days. Despite the delay, a universal 10 per cent tariff on most imported goods remained in effect. (ANI)