Trump admin can keep collecting 'sweeping tariffs' for now, says US court

A federal appeals court on Tuesday (local time) agreed to let US President Donald Trump's administration keep collecting the 'sweeping tariffs' for now.

The ruling by the US Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit extends a similar order it made after another federal court struck down the 'sweeping tariffs' on May 28, stating that Trump has overstepped his authority, Associated Press reported.

The Justice Department previously argued that the concerns raised by the US officials regarding the ongoing trade negotiations outweighed the economic harm mentioned by the small businesses that sued the Trump administration, Bloomberg reported.

The appeals court is expediting the case and has set July 31 as the next date for a hearing in the matter. This came after the court noted that the challenges that Trump's tariffs raise "issues of exceptional importance".

These tariffs are likely to remain in effect for at least a month or possibly longer until the petitioners seek the intervention of the US Supreme Court, since the legal proceedings continue in the Washington appeals court.

The case pertains to the 10 per cent base tariffs that Trump imposed on more than 100 countries in April, along with the additional tariffs that were imposed on countries with which the US runs trade deficits. However, Trump soon paused the additional tariffs imposed for 90 days.

The ruling in favour of Trump comes at a time when trade negotiators for the US and China reached a 'preliminary agreement' to de-escalate trade tensions.

Trump administration fights tariff battle

The Trump administration asked the appeals court to step in after a ruling by the US Court of International Trade blocked Trump from imposing the 'Liberation Day' tariffs, citing the misuse of an emergency law by the US President.

A day after this, senior officials of the administration informed the appeals court that they were 'undeterred' by the trade court's ruling, adding that they expected to either prevail on appeal or use other presidential powers to ensure the tariffs remain in effect.

Several companies filed a lawsuit against the sweeping tariffs imposed by the administration, which, according to Trump, are crucial to level the playing field for American businesses and workers.

The companies alleged that these tariffs on goods imported from other countries would result in higher costs and lower sales, and could lead some of them to bankruptcy.

Several Democratic-led states also sued the administration over the imposition of these tariffs.