Trump tariff chaos: What does 15% levy mean for trade deals the US signed?

From the EU to Vietnam to the UK and India, multiple countries had signed or finalised trade deals with the US.

The United States Supreme Court’s ruling, which declared Donald Trump’s sweeping tariffs unlawful, has injected uncertainty into global trade yet again, as the US president imposed a new 15 percent tariff on Saturday.

Weeks after his inauguration in January 2025, Trump imposed tariffs against foes and allies using the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA), unleashing a trade war that rattled global trade.

But on Friday, in a 6-3 decision, the top court agreed that Trump exceeded his authority by invoking the 1977 law, which was designed to allow US presidents to respond to specific national emergencies. The court said tariffs are a form of taxation, and under Article I of the Constitution, the power to tax belongs exclusively to Congress.

The court’s ruling, however, does not apply to Trump’s tariffs on steel, aluminium, lumber and automotives since these were imposed under a different law – Section 232 of the Trade Expansion Act of 1962.

Following the verdict, a furious Trump called the Supreme Court judges “fools and lapdogs” who are “very unpatriotic and disloyal to our Constitution”. He immediately signed an executive order under Section 122 of the US Trade Act of 1974 to impose a blanket 10 percent tariff on all countries the US trades with, starting on February 24. On Saturday, he raised the tariff to 15 percent, the highest rate allowed under this trade law.