SIIA Talk | U.S. Tariff Turbulence: Legal Uncertainty in Washington and What It Means for ASEAN Business

As Washington approaches the one-year anniversary of “Liberation Day”, U.S. tariff policy is once again in flux. Legal challenges and court rulings have raised fundamental questions about the authority underpinning recent trade measures. U.S. importers are already issuing legal challenges for the U.S. government to issue refunds, following the U.S. Supreme Court’s ruling that last year’s tariffs under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) were unconstitutional. In response, the Trump administration has introduced a new round of 10 per cent tariffs under Section 122 of the 1974 Trade Act which allows for temporary tariffs for 150 days without Congressional approval – but it is unclear if these will eventually lapse or if they will go even higher to 15 per cent, as President Trump has called for. Developments in Washington have created uncertainty over the sustainability of these measures.  

The current policy turbulence is prompting businesses to reassess the direction, durability, and credibility of U.S. trade policy going forward. For ASEAN economies deeply integrated into global supply chains, the stakes are heightened as trade policy increasingly intersects with geopolitics. Businesses are watching closely whether the new U.S. tariffs could undermine reciprocal trade arrangements that ASEAN member states and other countries negotiated with Washington. If trade measures are reinterpreted or imposed under new legal authorities, what does that mean for the durability and reliability of established agreements? 

Speakers:
Mr. Alex Feldman, Partner, The Asia Group
Ms. Elizabeth Chelliah, Principal Trade Consultant, CFOTI, Singapore Business Federation (SBF); former Principal Trade Specialist (PTS), Ministry of Trade and Industry (MTI), Republic of Singapore 

Moderator: Mr. Simon Tay, Chairman, Singapore Institute of International Affairs (SIIA)

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