Trump's global 10% tariff policy once again ruled invalid by U.S. court
The U.S. Court of International Trade ruled on May 7 that Trump administration’s global 10% tariff policy is invalid. The court ordered the U.S. government to repay the unfairly collected tariffs, plus interest, to three plaintiff companies for the past two months.
Following the U.S. Supreme Court overturning Trump’s reciprocal tariffs in February, this legal battle continues. On May 7, the U.S. Court of International Trade further ruled that Trump’s 10% global tariffs under Section 122 of the 1974 Trade Act were invalid due to exceeding the legal authority granted by the law.
According to the ruling issued Thursday, which passed by a 2-to-1 vote, the U.S. government’s 10% temporary tariff measures were deemed invalid, meaning the three companies that initiated the lawsuit no longer need to pay this additional fee.
As stated by the U.S. Court of International Trade, the government cannot invoke the 1974 law—originally designed to rebalance trade between the U.S. and its trading partners—to impose indiscriminate tariffs.
The Center for Liberty and Justice, which represented multiple companies in the lawsuit, welcomed this decision in a statement.
According to Jeffrey Schwab, one of the center’s chief attorneys: "The 1974 law was enacted to address a specific historical crisis at the time—the depletion of gold and foreign exchange reserves. Today, the U.S. faces a trade deficit, not a fiscal or international payment shortfall; therefore, the president has no authority to impose these tariffs."
Although this ruling currently applies only to the three plaintiff companies and remains appealable, it sets a legal precedent allowing other companies to challenge Trump administration tariffs. Additionally, around 20 U.S. states—including New York, California, and Pennsylvania—announced in early March they would also file lawsuits against these 10% temporary tariffs.
This marks another setback for President Trump, who since returning to the White House at the beginning of 2025 has centered tariffs within his economic policy and threatened new tariffs. One year ago, President Trump declared an “Liberation Day,” raising tariffs on nearly all trading partners, shifting U.S. trade policy from previous cooperative trade agreements toward openly applying economic pressure on both allies and adversaries.
Source: rfi
Original article: toutiao.com/article/1864683765616649/
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