The U.S. Supreme Court has restricted President Donald Trump's maneuvering room regarding tariff impositions, ruling that he cannot invoke the 1977 emergency law to justify tariffs. This decision effectively nullifies a significant portion of the tariffs introduced during his second term, prompting his administration to seek alternative legislative routes. This has been reported by Bloomberg News, indicating that the ruling forces Trump to reassess how he can pursue trade policies that impact U.S. relations with its trade partners.

The Court asserted that Trump had "overstepped his authority" by relying on the emergency economic powers to implement extensive reciprocal tariffs aimed at America's trading partners, including separate tariffs that affected China, Canada, and Mexico. Despite the constitution granting Congress the power to impose taxes and tariffs, legislators have delegated some authority to the executive branch through various laws, which allows Trump to explore other avenues, albeit with more procedural and temporal constraints ahead.

One available avenue for Trump is Section 232 of the Trade Expansion Act of 1962, which allows the president to impose tariffs related to national security without a cap on the tariff level or duration. However, this method mandates a preliminary investigation by the Department of Commerce, requiring the Secretary to submit a report within 270 days. This ruling and the restrictions placed on Trump could significantly affect his trade strategy moving forward, as the administration must now navigate a more complex legal landscape to implement its tariff policies.