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Lawsuit targets Trump’s 10% global tariff plan
A coalition comprising over 20 U.S. states is seeking court action to block President Donald Trump’s latest global tariffs, arguing that the White House is attempting to side-step a recent Supreme Court ruling that invalidates most of the administration’s earlier import duties. The lawsuit, filed last Thursday in the U.S. Court of International Trade by 22 states and two Democratic governors, seeks to halt a 10% global tariff imposed under Section 122 of the Trade Act of 1974 and to secure refunds for duties already collected. The legal challenge comes less than two weeks after the U.S. Supreme Court struck down a sweeping set of tariffs Trump imposed last year under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA). Underpinning the dispute are doubts over whether the president can rely on Section 122 - an emergency trade provision never previously been used to impose tariffs - to revive a key element of his trade policy after the court tossed out the earlier framework. The statute allows the president to levy tariffs of up to 15% for up to 150 days to address what the law describes as “fundamental international payments problems”. The Trump administration imposed the new 10% global tariff four days after t
Trade
Bessent: Trump's 15% tariffs will start this week
New 15% tariffs are expected to kick in this week, says United States Treasurer Scott Bessent. These new global trade tariffs were promised to be at a flat 15%, but then came into effect at 10% last week instead. Now, in a recent interview with CNBC Squawk Box, Bessent has promised that it will be rectified this week He told the outlet that tariff rates under the Trump administration would be working their way back to similar levels of last year, before the Supreme Court blocked them recently, starting with the 15% this week. “It’s my strong belief that the tariff rates will be back to their old rate within five months…they have survived more than 4,000 legal challenges,” he said. “They are more slow-moving, but they are more robust.”
Trade
New Trump tariffs come into effect, lower than expected
New Trump administration tariffs have kicked in at the lower than expected rate of 10%. The United States President Donald Trump announced on Saturday that he would be introducing broad new tariffs at a rate of 15%, after stating the day before that it would be 10%. This came after his attempts at mass import taxes were blocked by the Supreme Court, in a majority ruling, stating that he could not “point to clear congressional authorization”. However, an executive order was signed the same day by Trump for 10% rate global tariffs, and the White House is now reportedly working to increase that to the 15% change he announced the day after. These are operating under a section of the 1974 Trade Act, which allows the president to make the charge without congressional approval for 150 days.
Trade
Trump threatens new tariffs on countries pausing deals
United States President Donald Trump has said the U.S. will impose even higher tariffs on countries that seek to exit trade deals they set out before the Supreme Court struck down many of Trump’s tariff policies. The Supreme Court ruled on Friday (Saturday AEDT) that the tariffs Trump added under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act were unlawful, as only Congress holds the power to tax. The European Union paused the ratification of its trade agreement with the U.S. today, and India’s trade negotiators have deferred this week's planned talks. “Any Country that wants to “play games” with the ridiculous supreme court decision, especially those that have “Ripped Off” the U.S.A. for years, and even decades, will be met with a much higher Tariff, and worse, than that which they just recently agreed to,” Trump wrote on Truth Social. Trump did not mention how he would seek to impose these tariffs. After the Supreme Court’s decision eliminated Trump’s previous blanket tariffs, the administration added a new slate of 15% tariffs on all countries under section 122 of the U.S. Trade Act. These tariffs would legally expire after 150 days if not reauthorised by Congress, and Senate Democrats have committed to blocking
Trade
EU freezes trade deals with Trump following new tariffs
The European Union has frozen talks on a United States trade deal following U.S. President Donald Trump’s latest tariff hike. This follows Trump's retaliation to the Supreme Court striking down his global tariff policies by introducing a new universal 10% levy under a different legal framework. He also increased the global tariff rate to 15%, the legal maximum, which can be in place for 150 days before congressional approval is required. This set of alarm bells for officials in Europe and London who said Trump’s new tariff policy could upend trade deals signed with the U.S. last year. Leaders have asked for clarification on what the new tariff policy framework means in practice for their respective trade deals, which saw most EU exports to the States hit with a 15% levy and 10% for those from the U.K. The European Parliament’s trade committee held an emergency meeting following the new tariff announcement to discuss trade. Chair of the European Parliament’s Committee on International Trade, Bernd Lange, said legislative work was “on hold” following the U.S. Supreme Court ruling. “The situation is now more uncertain than ever,” Lange said in a statement. “This runs counter to the stability and predictability

Trade
India reschedules trade talks after tariff ruling
India has reportedly rescheduled its trade negotiators’ visit to the United States this week due to uncertainty after U.S. tariff measures were struck down by the Supreme Court. The delegation was aiming to finalise a trade agreement between the two countries after reaching an interim deal earlier this month. A new date for the negotiations has not yet been chosen, Reuters reported. The U.S. government has said that the trade agreements signed while President Donald Trump’s tariff measures were in effect will stand despite the Supreme Court’s ruling. “The deals were not premised on whether or not the the emergency tariff litigation would rise or fall,” U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer told CBS News. “We expect to stand by [the trade deals],” Greer said. “We expect our partners to stand by them. And I haven't heard anyone yet come to me and say, the deal's off.” Under the U.S.-India interim agreement, India would end or reduce tariffs on all U.S. industrial goods and many agricultural products, while the U.S. would lower tariffs on Indian imports from 50% to 18%. India would also buy US$500 billion in U.S. goods over five years, including energy products, aircraft parts, and precious metals. The U.S. Supre
Trade
US Supreme Court rebuke sparks Trump tariff surge
Within 24 hours of the Supreme Court of the United States ruling that he overstepped his authority, President Donald Trump lifted his blanket tariff from 10% to 15% on imports from every country. The court’s 6–3 decision found Trump misused the International Emergency Economic Powers Act - a statute designed for genuine national emergencies - to justify what was, in effect, a global tax on imports. Rather than concede ground, Trump reached for another lever: Section 122 of the Trade Act of 1974, which no president has used before. This provision allows a president to impose tariffs of up to 15% for 150 days without congressional approval. The escalation matters for Australia. Our exporters - from manufactured components to processed foods - now face a 15% hurdle into the world’s largest consumer market. While Australian firms do not physically write the cheque to U.S. Customs, American buyers may demand price cuts to offset the tariff. Then there are carve-outs. Critical minerals, some energy products and pharmaceuticals are reportedly exempt. Beef appears spared for now. But exemptions are political instruments, not economic principles, and they can vanish. The larger issue is legal durability. Sec
Trade
Supreme Court strikes down Trump's tariffs
The United States Supreme Court has struck down a huge chunk of President Donald Trump’s tariffs, deeming them illegal and killing them off. The law that undergirds those import duties “does not authorise the President to impose tariffs,” the majority ruled 6-3 in the long-awaited decision. This decision creates a massive loss for the U.S. as the country would now have to refund more than US$100 billion to businesses that paid tariffs. However, it is unclear how the refund process will work, and the court decision did not provide clear guidance. Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh, who disagreed with the majority vote, wrote that the refund process is likely to be a “mess”. “The United States may be required to refund billions of dollars to importers who paid the IEEPA tariffs, even though some importers may have already passed on costs to consumers or others,” he wrote. In a post to Truth Social, Trump said the Supreme Court members who voted against the tariffs “should be ashamed of themselves”. “Their decision was ridiculous but, now the adjustment process begins, and we will do everything possible to take in even more money than we were taking in before!” he said. Following the announcement, Trump has
Trade
Canada turns tariff trade chaos into EV coup
A C$7 billion (A$7.25 billion) commitment by one of the world’s largest automakers, Volkswagen (VOWG), to build a massive electric vehicle (EV) battery factory in St. Thomas, Ontario, not only marks a watershed pivot for the Canadian car industry, its lays down a marker to Trump administration that’s threatening sweeping tariffs on imports as leverage in trade negotiations. As the largest EV plant of its kind in North America and possibly the world, the St. Thomas factory - through the Volkswagen subsidiary, PowerCo - is expected to be capable of producing batteries for up to one million electric vehicles annually. To put the magnitude of the St Thomas factory into context, 20.7 million EV passenger cars and light-duty vehicles were sold globally in 2025. Volkswagen could have chosen to expand in the U.S. - where it already has facilities - especially given the size of the American market and its wealthier consumer base. Given that access to American consumers has historically been the prize that every major manufacturer wants to secure, why did Volkswagen snub the U.S. in favour of Canada and why now? Much of the answer can be found by looking at what trade policy ends up doing when it’s menacingly out of touch wit