TRUMP HAS RESUMED THE UPSIDE DOWN ON TARIFFS - Filenews 25/2
Donald Trump's regressions into US tariff policy have no end, not even after the Supreme Court's decision last Friday to declare the tariffs imposed by the President illegal invoking a 1974 emergency law. Trump responded yesterday with general tariffs of 10% on most of the products imported into the United States and it is considered very likely that he will soon sign a decree to increase the rate to 15%.
For some countries, this development is positive, as the 10% or even 15% tariffs are lower than the tariffs imposed by Trump in recent months. For some other countries, tariffs of 10% and even more so 15% are more painful than the existing ones. However, for all countries, as well as for businesses in the US, uncertainty about the next day and frequent changes in the imposition of tariffs and counter-tariffs is causing disruption to global business and global consumption.
Hence the European Union appears again upset by yesterday's decision by Trump and its possible amendment in the coming days and calls for the implementation of the US-EU agreement last August, which set tariffs on European products at 15%. It is obvious that the EU chooses to stabilize the tariff policy of the USA, so that medium- and long-term plans can be made by European companies, even if today, on a temporary basis, the Trump decree provides for tariffs 5% lower than those agreed in August.
"We want to have real stability and predictability. And unfortunately, the government, the president of the United States, have actually violated this agreement several times," Bernd Lange, chairman of the European Parliament's international trade committee, told CNBC on Tuesday.
The European Parliament announced on Monday that it has suspended work on ratifying the US-EU trade deal, while also seeking clarification from the White House on whether the agreement is still in force.
It should be noted that the decree signed yesterday by Trump does not cover tariffs on cars, timber, steel, copper and derived products, which in some cases exceed 50%. They also do not concern some imported technology products.
Reuters commented yesterday that the US president's new decision adds to the confusion surrounding US trade policy, without giving any explanation why the lower rate of 10% was used. It added that brokers cited uncertainty about the trading outlook as one of the reasons why European stocks fell slightly on Tuesday.
What will happen to the money paid?
On Monday, the courier company FedEx filed a lawsuit against the U.S. government, seeking a refund of tariffs it had paid under the Emergency Powers Act, which Trump had invoked for emergency tariffs but the Supreme Court ruled last Friday that it was illegally exploited.
FedEx is seeking a "full refund" of all duties paid under the International Extraordinary Financial Powers Act (IEEPA). The lawsuit is directed against the Customs and Border Protection service, which belongs to the Ministry of Internal Security.
It remains unclear whether and how a huge number of companies will be refunded their tariff payments under the same law, and whether they will also have to go to court to claim money from the U.S. government.
