Trump’s New Global Tariffs Test Legal Limits and Trade Ties

A temporary levy gives way to a broader regime

The United States imposed tariffs of 10% to 12.5% on imports from more than 80 countries early Friday, immediately replacing a temporary 10% global duty as it expired. The administration tied the new levies to trading partners’ treatment of goods made with forced labor and invoked Section 301 of the Trade Act of 1974.nytimes +1

The tariff schedule identifies 60 trading partners, while the country count rises above 80 when the European Union’s 27 members are counted separately.theguardian +1 The duties cover the EU, Britain, Canada, Mexico, China, India, Australia and Brazil, among others, extending a broad import-tax floor even as separate, higher product and country tariffs remain in place.theguardian

Forced labor becomes the legal foundation

U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer said countries that fail to ban or enforce bans on forced-labor imports disadvantage American businesses, arguing that Washington has rigorously enforced its own prohibition for nearly a century.theguardian Canada and the EU dispute that premise: Canada already prohibits forced-labor imports, while an EU ban is scheduled to take effect in December 2027.nytimes

The choice of Section 301 is also an attempt to place the policy on firmer legal ground. In February, the Supreme Court ruled 6-3 that peacetime tariff authority rests with Congress, invalidating duties imposed under emergency powers; Trump then used a separate law for the 150-day bridge tariff that expired Friday.wsj +1 Section 301 permits action against unreasonable or discriminatory foreign trade practices, but critics argue that applying it across most of the world stretches a tool historically used for narrower investigations.theguardian +1

Allies push back as import costs persist

Australia and Brazil called the tariffs unjustified, Norway said there was no basis for them, and EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas sought clarification from Washington. Canada said it should not be targeted and urged a coordinated multilateral response to forced labor rather than another round of duties.theguardian

For importers and consumers, the immediate consequence is continuity rather than relief: the expiring 10% charge has largely been replaced, and some goods now face 12.5%. Trump argues that tariffs protect jobs, manufacturing and U.S. leverage in trade negotiations. The political risk is that businesses pass the taxes into prices. A Harris Poll cited by the Guardian found seven in 10 Americans said they had paid higher prices because of the administration’s tariffs, while 72% judged their consumer impact negatively.theguardian

The next test is likely to come in court. The administration has preserved the architecture of a global tariff system, but its new forced-labor rationale will have to survive challenges over whether Congress ever delegated power broad enough to sustain it.wsj +1