The appeal follows a decision on Thursday by the US Court of International Trade that invalidated his use of a Section 122 trade provision that saw him slap 10 per cent import taxes on nearly every country on earth. In its ruling, the court found that he failed to meet the “large and serious” trade deficit test required under the 1974 statute.
Section 122 was something of a stopgap until he could impose tougher provisions, so its impact will be capped.
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“That said, psychologically and politically, the ruling is still a setback for the Trump administration,” said Yilun Zhang, trade manager at the Institute for China-America Studies. “It forces the White House to scramble for alternative tariff authorities and reinforces the perception that the administration’s tariff toolkit is becoming more legally constrained.”
And Trump does not like to be constrained.
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Trump slaps 34% reciprocal tariffs on Chinese imports as part of ‘Liberation Day’ package
Trump slaps 34% reciprocal tariffs on Chinese imports as part of ‘Liberation Day’ package
The hindrance comes as Trump heads to Beijing for a summit with Chinese President Xi Jinping, where trade will be high on the agenda, even as his domestic and international agenda faces growing headwinds. These include the Iran war, rising gas prices and declining poll numbers.
