By Amjad Qaimkhani
WASHINGTON: President Donald Trump said on Saturday he would raise a temporary tariff on US imports from all countries from 10 percent to 15 percent, the maximum level allowed under the law. The move came after the US Supreme Court struck down his previous tariff program.
Trump had immediately announced a 10 percent across-the-board tariff on Friday following the court’s ruling, which found that he had exceeded his authority by imposing an array of higher rates under an economic emergency law. The new levies are based on a separate and largely untested statute known as Section 122.
“I, as President of the United States of America, will be, effective immediately, raising the 10 percent Worldwide Tariff on Countries, many of which have been ‘ripping’ the US off for decades, without retribution (until I came along!), to the fully allowed, and legally tested, 15 percent level,” he wrote on Truth Social.
It allows tariffs of up to 15 percent, but requires congressional approval if they are to remain in place beyond 150 days. No president has previously invoked Section 122, and its use is likely to invite further legal challenges. Trade experts and congressional aides are sceptical that a Republican-majority Congress would agree to extend the tariffs.
Polls show a growing number of Americans blame the duties for rising prices. In a social media post on Saturday, Trump said he would use the 150-day window to pursue other “legally permissible” tariffs.
