On August 29, the US Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit upheld a previous verdict from the US Court of International Trade that US president Donald Trump’s tariffs are illegal and that his use of emergency powers, under under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA), to stop the flow of drugs, such as fentanyl, into the country wasn’t justified. 

Several key members of the US administration, including the president, slammed the court’s verdict on social media, saying that the removal of the tariffs would be harmful to US interests at home and abroad. 

The stakes are high for many countries around the world. Earlier this week the US introduced its 50% tariffs on imports from India, excluding electronics and pharmaceuticals. The rupee fell to a record low against the dollar on August 29 as economists warned of a potential $60 billion hit to trade, with items such as clothing, jewellery and gems to be impacted by the tariffs if exported to the US. 

Meanwhile a so-caledd ‘de minimis’ tariff exemption on packages worth less than $800 has been removed by the Trump administration on August 29 causing postal offices around the world to suspend shipments US and small firms scrambling to find how best to approach the measure.