The 4 ways in which Trump can defy tariffs court ruling after being dealt major blow

suffered a major blow to his economic agenda, after a US Federal court ruled his imposition of tariffs illegal. The US Court of International Trade said the had overstepped his authority by invoking the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) to impose his sweeping tariffs on countries around the world.

A panel of three judges ruled that the US Constitution gave Congress exclusive powers to regulate commerce with other nations. The ruling blocks the 10% baseline tariff imposed by on most imports, as well as the additional tariffs on China, Canada and Mexico. Sectoral tariffs imposed on steel, aluminium and cars remain unaffected by the court's decision.

The White House has been given 10 days to halt the tariffs, but has said it will appeal the decision, insisting it is "not for unelected judges to decide how to properly address a national emergency".

If the ruling is upheld, then the government will have to reimburse businesses the import fees they have had to pay, along with any incurred interest.

However, the administration has a number of other legal options at its disposal, that could still allow it to enforce the tariff regime - according to the investment bank Goldman Sachs.

These include Section 122 of the Trade Act of 1974, Section 301 and Section 338 of the Trade Act of 1930.

Section 122 would be the quickest way to get around the problem, but would be time limited.

"The administration could quickly replace the 10% across-the-board tariff with a similar tariff of up to 15% under Sec. 122," analysts at the Wall Street bank said.

However, under the terms of the section, Congressional approval would still be needed after 150 days.

Alternatively, the White House could launch Section 301 investigations on key US trading partners.

This would lay the bureaucratic groundwork for tariffs, although the process is time consuming and would probably take several weeks at a minimum.

Trump also has the option to broaden section 232 tariffs, which are already in place for steel, aluminium and car imports.

Finally, section 338 allows the president to impose levies of up to 50% on imports from countries that discriminate against the US, although it has never been used before.

The court ruling was based on two separate cases. The Liberty Justice Center brought one on behalf of several small businesses that buy goods from countries targeted by the duties, while a coalition of US state governments also challenged the import taxes.