US President Donald Trump on Saturday said he was raising the previously announced 10 per cent worldwide tariff to 15 per cent with immediate effect, a day after imposing the baseline levy on global trade, sharply escalating his administration’s tariff push.In a post on Truth Social, Trump said the higher rate would apply to countries he accused of having “ripped” the United States off for decades and framed the move as a response to a recent Supreme Court decision on tariffs.“Based on a thorough, detailed, and complete review of the ridiculous, poorly written, and extraordinarily anti-American decision on Tariffs issued yesterday, after MANY months of contemplation, by the United States Supreme Court, please let this statement serve to represent that I, as President of the United States of America, will be, effective immediately, raising the 10% Worldwide Tariff on Countries, many of which have been ‘ripping’ the U.S. off for decades, without retribution (until I came along!), to the fully allowed, and legally tested, 15% level,” Trump wrote.Also read: US Supreme Court rules against Trump’s global tariffs imposed under emergency lawTrump’s global tariffs: A 5% increase to new duties The announcement marks a 5 percentage point increase from the 10 per cent global tariff rate unveiled just a day earlier, intensifying the administration’s trade stance amid legal scrutiny over the scope of presidential tariff powers.Trump indicated that further tariff measures could follow in the coming months. “During the next short number of months, the Trump Administration will determine and issue the new and legally permissible Tariffs, which will continue our extraordinarily successful process of Making America Great Again – GREATER THAN EVER BEFORE!!!” he said. The president did not specify which countries would be most affected by the higher 15 per cent baseline rate, nor did he detail the legal mechanism under which the increase would be implemented. However, he described the new level as “fully allowed, and legally tested.”US Supreme Court’s blow to TrumpThe Supreme Court of the United States on Friday struck down Trump’s global tariffs imposed under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) in a 6–3 ruling, rejecting his use of national emergency powers to levy broad-based import taxes.The court found that the 1977 law — historically used for sanctions and asset freezes — does not explicitly authorise tariffs, and that the Constitution grants Congress the authority to impose them.The measures had been challenged by businesses and 12 states after lower courts ruled that Trump exceeded his statutory authority. The cases included lawsuits by small importing firms as well as Democratic-led states, arguing that trade deficits did not constitute the kind of national emergency envisioned under IEEPA.The ruling represents a significant setback to a central pillar of Trump’s second-term economic agenda, which has relied heavily on tariffs as both a revenue tool and a negotiating lever in global trade disputes.However, the decision does not bar the administration from pursuing tariffs under other statutory provisions.Also read: Trump announces additional 10% global tariff after SC setback; effective Feb 24Trump doubles down, defiant to US Supreme Court’s orderHours after the ruling, Trump signed an executive order imposing a fresh 10 per cent global tariff on top of existing import duties for a period of about five months, signalling that he would not retreat from his trade agenda despite the setback from the Supreme Court of the United States.According to a White House fact sheet, the new levy will take effect at 12:01 a.m. ET on February 24. Trump said he was invoking Section 122 of the Trade Act of 1974 — a rarely used provision that allows the president to impose tariffs of up to 15 per cent for up to 150 days to address “large and serious” balance of payments problems. The authority does not require a prior investigation, though any extension beyond 150 days would need congressional approval.Speaking at a White House briefing, Trump insisted that his broader tariff architecture remained intact. “All of those tariffs remain,” he said. “They all remain. Even after the decision.”“Effective immediately, all National Security TARIFFS, Section 232 and existing Section 301 TARIFFS, remain in place, and in full force and effect. Today I will sign an Order to impose a 10% GLOBAL TARIFF, under Section 122, over and above our normal TARIFFS already being charged…” he added.In a subsequent Truth Social post, Trump wrote that he had signed an order for tariffs on all countries “which will be effective almost immediately.”Visibly angered by the court’s decision striking down his earlier tariffs under the 1977 International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA), Trump vowed to find alternative legal routes to sustain tariff revenues. “We have ‘alternatives’ could be more money. We will take more money, we will continue to take billions of dollars,” he told reporters.Also read: Trump calls US Supreme Court’s tariff ruling ‘a disgrace,’ says ‘backup plan’ readyTrump’s contention: ‘Can’t charge one dollar from any country’“The good news is that there are methods, practices, statutes and authorities as recognized by the entire court… that are even stronger than the IEEPA tariffs available to me as President of the United States,” he said, adding that over the next five months his administration would conduct investigations into countries’ trade practices to justify additional duties.Calling the ruling “deeply disappointing,” Trump said, “The SC ruling on tariffs is deeply disappointing,” and claimed that “foreign countries that have been ripping us off are very happy.”He went further, criticising members of the bench. “Court says we cannot charge not even 1 dollar under IEEPA,” he said. “How ridiculous is this? I can’t charge any country a dollar but destroy them.”“I can destroy the trade, destroy the country but I can’t charge one dollar,” he added, while asserting, “I want to be very well behaved, I did not want to do anything that affects the decision of the court. I want to be a good boy.”The ruling, delivered 6–3, held that IEEPA does not explicitly authorise the president to levy tariffs — a power the Constitution assigns to Congress — significantly narrowing the legal foundation of Trump’s emergency-based trade framework, even as he moves to preserve it through other statutes.
