On February 21, the Supreme Court dealt a major blow to the Trump administration by declaring the massive tariffs imposed by the U.S. government on the rest of the world illegal, stating that President Donald Trump exceeded his authority by invoking a state of economic emergency (IEEPA in English) that, according to the ruling, did not grant him that power. For Trump, it was an unexpected and significant setback, as the tariffs had been not only his main economic policy tool for a whole year but also a tool for foreign policy in general.
The Supreme Court then stated that the issue was not the tariffs themselves, but the chosen instrument. That day, Trump said the decision was just a setback but that he would find a way to reimpose them. He immediately invoked section 122 of the trade law, something that had never been done before. A controversial provision that, in exceptional circumstances, allows him to punish other countries with up to 15% tariffs when there is a deep trade imbalance... but it is a measure that only lasts for a maximum of 150 days unless Congress agrees to extend it. The problem is that they have no intention of doing so, so this Thursday, as that measure is about to expire, he has invoked even more striking legislation on forced labor or overproduction to impose tariffs of between 10% and 12.5% on 60 trading partners, including the European Union.
"President Trump acknowledges that decades of moral persuasion have not eradicated forced labor from global supply chains. The United States has had an import ban on forced labor for almost a century, and enforces it rigorously; it is time for our trading partners to do the same," explained U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer.
The new tariffs, amid escalating tensions with Iran again, with oil at $100 a barrel once more, and with U.S. debt rising every day, come after a controversial investigation into alleged non-compliance by all those partners with their duty to prevent forced labor in their supply chains, which results in lower prices and, according to Washington, penalizes American workers. An investigation that had to be opened in February when provisional tariffs were imposed to justify the "unjustifiable or discriminatory" practices that Trump sees in his partners.
That is why the U.S. is now punishing products from countries that have passed laws against forced labor with a 10% tariff, while those with insufficient prohibitions or that engage in what they consider unfair practices or overproduction will be subject to the higher rate of 12.5%.
In the first category are the EU, the UK, Canada, Mexico, Taiwan, and India. Products from Japan, Switzerland, South Korea, and dozens of other countries, on the other hand, will be subject to a 12.5% tariff, as published in the Federal Register. Products from dozens of other countries will also be subject to a 12.5% tariff.
"It is the most significant international action on labor rights that the United States, or any country, has ever taken," boasted a senior Trump administration official in a call with journalists.
This weekend marks the first anniversary of the Turnberry Agreement, the trade pact reached on July 27, 2025, between the U.S. president and the President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, at the Turnberry golf resort (Scotland), with the aim of avoiding a trade war between the two powers. The agreement set a 15% tariff for most European exports to the U.S., reducing the risk of higher tariffs, while the EU committed to eliminating most of its tariffs on U.S. industrial products, increasing its energy purchases from the U.S. by $750 billion by 2028, and promoting $600 billion in new investments in the U.S.
The new tariffs will take effect on Friday at 12:01 a.m. New York time, according to the notice. The tariffs will not apply to certain goods already loaded on ships before that date. Similarly, fuels, food, and fertilizers will be exempt, as well as automobiles, metals, and medicines, which are subject to specific tariffs for each sector.
Items covered in the North American trade agreement with Mexico and Canada will also be excluded, although Trump has announced brutal additional tariffs this week against Canada, as he has not made the progress he desires with the government of Mark Carney in bilateral negotiations. Just as he punished Brazil 10 days ago, invoking Section 301, with a 25% tariff on imports of certain products alleging unfair trade practices with a country with which he has a trade surplus.