US Trade Court Blocks Trump’s Sweeping Tariffs.

A US federal court has blocked President Donald Trump’s sweeping tariffs, in a major blow to a key component of his economic policies.

The Court of International Trade ruled that an emergency law invoked by the White House did not give the president unilateral authority to impose tariffs on nearly every country.

The Manhattan-based court said the US Constitution gave Congress exclusive powers to regulate commerce with other nations and this was not superseded by the president’s remit to safeguard the economy.

The Trump administration lodged an appeal within minutes of the ruling.

The ruling was based on two separate cases. The nonpartisan Liberty Justice Center brought a case on behalf of several small businesses that import goods from countries targeted by the duties, while a coalition of US state governments also challenged the import taxes.

The two cases mark the first major legal challenges to Trump’s so-called “Liberation Day” tariffs.

A three-judge panel ruled that the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA), a 1977 law that Trump cited to justify the tariffs, does not give him the power to impose the sweeping import taxes.

The court also blocked a separate set of levies the Trump administration imposed on China, Mexico and Canada, in response to what it said was the unacceptable flow of drugs and illegal immigrants into the US.

However, the court was not asked to address tariffs imposed on some specific goods like cars, steel and aluminium, which fall under a different law.

The White House has criticised the ruling, though Trump has not yet commented directly.

“It is not for unelected judges to decide how to properly address a national emergency,” White House deputy press secretary 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,” he added.

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