Trump’s ‘Liberation Day’ tariffs blocked by US court: Here's what it says

A US federal court on Wednesday blocked President Donald Trump's proposed ‘Liberation Day’ tariffs, ruling that he exceeded his authority by attempting to impose blanket duties on imports from countries that sell more to the United States than they buy.

The Manhattan-based Court of International Trade said the Constitution grants Congress the power to regulate international commerce, a power that cannot be overruled by the president’s emergency authority to protect the economy.

Meanwhile, the White House on Wednesday slammed "unelected judges" over the court ruling noting that ‘President Trump pledged to put America first’. 

"It is not for unelected judges to decide how to properly address a national emergency," administration spokesman Kush Desai said in a statement. "President Trump pledged to put America first, and the administration is committed to using every lever of executive power to address this crisis and restore American greatness."

What did the lawsuit say?

The lawsuit was filed by the nonpartisan Liberty Justice Centre on behalf of five small US businesses that import goods from countries targeted by the duties. It was the first major legal challenge to Trump's tariffs.

The companies, which range from a New York wine and spirits importer to a Virginia-based maker of educational kits and musical instruments, have said the tariffs will hurt their ability to do business.

At least seven lawsuits are challenging the levies, the centrepiece of Trump’s trade policy.

The plaintiffs argued that the 1977 International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEPPA) does not authorise the use of tariffs.

Even if it did, they say, the trade deficit does not meet the law’s requirement that an emergency be triggered only by an "unusual and extraordinary threat." The US has run a trade deficit with the rest of the world for 49 consecutive years.

Trump’s administration says courts backed President Nixon’s emergency tariffs in 1971 and argues that only Congress, not the courts,—can decide if a president’s emergency declaration is legal. Trump’s Liberation Day tariffs shook global financial markets and led many economists to downgrade the outlook for US economic growth. 

Meanwhile, global markets have fluctuated wildly since Trump announced the levies in a sweeping executive order on April 2. Since then, trillions of dollars in market value have been shed and regained amid weeks of delays, reversals and announcements about potential trade deals, particularly with China.

(With inputs from Reuters and AP)