Trump Prepares New Tariffs as Treasury Refunds Billions in Duties

Tariff revenue is flowing out of the US Treasury faster than it is coming in, with nearly $22 billion in duties refunded to importers in May after courts determined the tariffs had been unlawfully collected, Alicia Diaz reported for Bloomberg News.

A proposal released earlier this month following a forced-labor investigation involving dozens of US trading partners is widely viewed as the first step toward implementing new tariff measures.

Businesses, however, continue to pay tariffs on goods imported from most countries despite the Supreme Court's decision striking down President Donald Trump's emergency tariffs imposed under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act.

The temporary 10 percent global tariff rate adopted after the ruling is scheduled to expire at the end of July. White House officials have pledged to replace the lost revenue with more permanent import duties.

A proposal released earlier this month following a forced-labor investigation involving dozens of US trading partners is widely viewed as the first step toward implementing new tariff measures.

According to Bloomberg Economics analysts Nicole Gorton-Caratelli and Chris Kennedy, the proposed levies would increase the average US tariff rate by approximately 0.6 percentage point, bringing it to about 11 percent.

That figure remains below the 13.5 percent average tariff rate that prevailed when Trump's reciprocal tariffs were still in effect.