Treasury secretary announces that US is preparing to impose 15% tariffs this week
Scott Bessent assured that this will be done under Section 122 of the Trade Act of 1974, the same basis for Trump's new 10% tariff, which only allows a tariff to last 150 days unless Congress extends it.
Bessent at the White House/ Saul Loeb.
Secretary of the Treasury Scott Bessent said Wednesday that Donald Trump's 15% global tariff will likely be implemented this week, as the president moves to rebuild his trade agenda after a major legal setback.
Last month, the Supreme Court struck down country-specific tariffs Trump imposed on allies and competitors alike, a major blow to his signature economic policy.
Since then, the Republican has resorted to a different law to impose a new 10% tariff and has promised to raise that level to 15%.
Asked when the increase will be implemented, Bessent told CNBC: "That's likely sometime this week."
Section 122 of the Trade Act 1974.
During this five-month period, the Trump administration will move forward to conclude investigations linked to national security and unfair trade concerns, Bessent said.
These investigations, in turn, could lead to new sets of tariffs.
"It's my strong belief that the tariff rates will be back to their old rate within five months," Bessent said, referring to levels seen before the legal blow.
"And those are very fulsome authorities," he added, referring to the laws justifying these investigations.
"They have survived more than 4,000 legal challenges. They are more slow moving, but they are more robust," Bessent said.
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