Backlash after US Supreme Court decision on Trump's tariffs / US could be forced to return a huge sum. How Trump responds

The decision of the Supreme Court of the United States to cancel the tariffs that the Trump administration introduced through a law of 1977, bypassing the authority of Congress, was welcomed by the business community, the Democratic opposition and even some Republican voices, while the trade partners of the country had rather reserved attitudes. Friday's Supreme Court ruling, which Trump strongly criticized, does not prevent him from imposing tariffs through other tools, and he has already announced a 10 percent “global tax” on imports entering the U.S., according to Reuters, CNN and NBC News.

The US may have to pay back a huge sum: $175 billion

The United States could face the obligation to reimburse more than $175 billion to importers after the Supreme Court's decision on Friday, according to an estimate made by Penn-Wharton Budget Model at the request of Reuters.

The amount would represent refunds for tariffs already collected by the government since Trump unilaterally imposed the new taxes without congressional approval. Several companies already have open lawsuits to recover the amounts, and the Supreme Court's decision does not clarify whether the state can keep the money collected so far.

Trump, who harshly criticized the six-judge majority that ruled against the tariffs introduced by the current US administration through the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA), was asked by reporters present at the White House what will happen to the $175 billion collected so far from taxes imposed on other countries by this law.

In response, he argued that the Supreme Court justices had not addressed this issue in Friday's ruling and suggested that the situation would have to be clarified in court.

“They take months and months to come up with an opinion and they don't even discuss it. We took hundreds of billions of dollars, not millions, hundreds of billions of dollars, so I said, well, what happens to all the money we took? It wasn't discussed. You don't think they would put a phrase in there to say 'keep the money' or 'don't keep the money,' do you? I guess there has to be a trial in the next two years (…). Your question it's very simple, that was the first question I asked,” Trump replied.

US trading partners await 'clarification'

The European Union, the United States' biggest trading partner, said it was “carefully” reviewing Friday's Supreme Court ruling.

“We remain in close contact with the US administration as we await clarification on what steps they intend to take following this decision,” European Commission trade spokesman Olof Gill said, according to NBC News.

“Companies on both sides of the Atlantic depend on stability and predictability in their trading relationship. That's why we continue to support low tariffs and work to reduce them,” added Gill.

The European Union broadly expects the Trump administration to reimpose tariffs through other mechanisms.

“We have indeed followed this decision. However, we expect the US administration to use other legal tools to reintroduce the tariffs,” a French diplomat told the quoted source.

The British government has announced it will contact the Trump administration to find out how the Supreme Court decision affects trade with the US.

“That is a matter for the US to determine, but we will continue to support UK business,” a government spokesman in London was quoted as saying by NBC News.

“The UK enjoys the lowest reciprocal tariffs globally and, in any scenario, we expect our privileged trading position with the US to continue,” the Labor cabinet representative added.

He said Prime Minister Keir Starmer “will work with the Administration to understand how the ruling will affect tariffs for the UK and the rest of the world”.

“A victory for the American people,” say Democrats. Even some Republicans welcome the decision

The Democratic minority leader of the US Senate described the decision as a victory for “American consumers”.

“We've said from day one: A president cannot ignore Congress and unilaterally impose tariffs on Americans,” Chuck Schumer said, as quoted by The Guardian.

“Now Trump should end this reckless trade war for good and finally give families and small businesses the help they deserve,” the Democrat added.

Katherine Clark, a Democrat in the House of Representatives, spoke for her part about “a victory for the American people.”

“Trump's tariffs are an illegal tax on working families — raising costs on everything from groceries to utility bills,” she said. “Democrats will continue to fight to make your life more affordable,” Clark added.

“A common sense decision”

Even some politicians from the president's party welcomed Friday's Supreme Court decision. That was the case for Don Bacon, one of six House Republicans who recently voted to repeal US tariffs targeting Canadian imports.

“The system of checks and balances in the Constitution still works. Article 1 gives Congress the tariff authority. It was a clear, straightforward and common-sense decision by the Supreme Court,” he said in a statement, quoted by NBC News.

Bacon, who is not running for re-election, said he had been pushing the same argument for the past year.

“Going forward, Congress should defend its authorities and not rely solely on the Supreme Court,” added the Republican congressman. “In addition to the constitutional concerns I had about the Administration's blanket tariffs, I do not believe tariffs are smart economic policy,” Don Bacon added.

Markets rise after Friday's decision

Gold prices rose more than 1 percent on Friday, supported by weaker-than-expected U.S. Gross Domestic Product data, according to Reuters.

“It's hard to see the president taking his toys and going home; he will try to restore tariffs using other statutes that will promote instability,” said Tai Wong, an independent metals trader.

Uncertainty in the medium term will not deter gold trends, Wong added.

Gold, considered a safe haven when there is geopolitical and economic uncertainty, also tends to do well when interest rates are lower.

Spot gold XAU= rose 1.5% to $5,071.48 an ounce.

The spot price of silver XAG= rose 5.8% to $82.92 an ounce. Spot platinum XPT= rose 4.5% to $2,163.53, while palladium XPD= rose 4% to $1,751.70.

Wall Street's main stock indexes rose on Friday after the Supreme Court decision.

The US Chamber of Commerce welcomed the Court's ruling, which it described as “good news for businesses and consumers”.

“We encourage the administration to take this opportunity to reset overall tariff policy in a way that leads to higher economic growth, higher wage increases for workers and lower costs for families,” the organization said.