Trump Raises the Global Tariff to 15% Under a New Law a Day After the Supreme Court Struck Down His Old One

One day after the Supreme Court held on February 20, 2026 that the International Emergency Economic Powers Act did not authorize his global tariffs, Trump announced on Truth Social that he was raising the replacement tariff to 15 percent from 10 percent, "effective immediately." The new duties rest on Section 122 of the Trade Act of 1974, which authorizes import surcharges of up to 15 percent to address balance-of-payments deficits — and only for 150 days, after which Congress must act. Trump said he would impose the "fully allowed, and legally tested, 15% level" and would issue further "legally permissible" tariffs in the months ahead. He also signed Executive Order 14389, "Ending Certain Tariff Actions," and Executive Order 14388, continuing the suspension of duty-free de minimis treatment, on February 20.

The move substitutes one statutory basis for another after an adverse ruling, but Section 122 carries a rate ceiling and a hard expiration that IEEPA did not, converting an open-ended emergency power into a time-limited one that returns the question to Congress within five months.

U.S. stock futures fell and gold prices rose on February 23 following the announcements.