US court blocks Trump tariffs

Washington: The Trump administration on Wednesday filed an appeal to a US federal court ruling that sought to block most of the US President's sweeping import tariffs from going into effect.

"Notice is hereby given that defendants appeal to the United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit from the Court's opinion and final judgment of May 28, 2025," the court filing said.

A panel of federal judges blocked President Donald Trump from enforcing some of his harshest tariffs on China and other key trading partners, ruling that he did not have “unbounded authority” to tax imports from nearly every country.

The decision by the US Court of International Trade marks a notable early blow to Trump’s tariff strategy, weakening one of his main tools for pushing other nations into more favourable trade agreements with the US.

According to reports, Trump’s use of the 1977 International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) to levy tariffs was unprecedented. The law typically applies to sanctions and embargoes, not tariffs, and doesn’t even mention duties.

Still, Trump relied on it to announce and later pause wide-ranging import duties in April. He also cited the law to justify tariffs on Canadian and Mexican goods, blaming those countries for fentanyl entering the US.

In its ruling, the Court of International Trade concluded that Trump’s tariffs “exceed any authority granted” under IEEPA. The panel of three bipartisan judges, addressing lawsuits filed by both states and businesses, found many of the tariffs were issued "illegally".

It remains uncertain exactly when the tariffs will stop being collected. The ruling gave the administration up to 10 days to begin phasing them out through formal procedures. In response, the Trump administration immediately filed an appeal with the US Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit.