Tariffs can serve either as revenue-raising measures (taxes) or as regulatory tools to influence foreign commerce, and courts evaluate a tariff's primary purpose when determining whether a presidential tariff is authorized by statute.
November 06, 2025
high
legal
Legal distinction used in judicial review of trade measures.
If a court determines that tariffs imposed by the executive branch are unlawful, resolving remedies can require remanding the matter to lower courts and can create complex administrative challenges around refunding collected tariff revenues.
November 05, 2025
high
temporal
Determinations of unlawfulness typically separate liability from remedy, and the accumulated sums from tariffs can complicate restitution processes.
Tariffs are a trade policy tool that governments can raise to increase the cost of imports and to pressure trading partners in negotiations.
October 31, 2025
high
general
Tariff adjustments are commonly used to influence trade balances and negotiation leverage.
Trade tensions between major economies commonly involve tariffs, retaliatory export controls on strategic materials such as rare earth elements, and restrictions on exports of advanced technologies such as computer chips.
October 30, 2025
high
economic
General mechanisms used in state-to-state economic rivalry and trade disputes.
Tariffs are commonly expressed as percentage rates applied to imported goods.
October 30, 2025
high
economic
Basic characteristic of tariff policy instruments.
Governments sometimes use tariffs as a policy tool to pressure trading partners to change trade practices that are perceived as unfair.
October 21, 2025
high
policy
Describes a common trade policy approach for addressing perceived unfair practices.
Trade disputes involving measures such as tariffs and export restrictions can significantly disrupt industries and affect the global economy.
October 21, 2025
high
economic
General statement about the potential economic impact of trade tensions between major economies.
Tariffs are used as a negotiating and pressure tool in international trade relations, including between the United States and China.
October 15, 2025
high
policy
Tariffs can be implemented or threatened to influence trade negotiations and outcomes between trading partners.
When governments and trading partners fail to reach a trade agreement, higher tariffs can be imposed on exports destined for the partner country.
September 23, 2025
high
general
Mechanism linking trade negotiation outcomes to tariff policy
Governments deploy tariffs and export controls as policy tools to influence trade relations and protect national security by restricting exports or raising import costs for critical materials.
high
general
Tariffs and export controls are commonly used levers in international trade disputes and strategic supply-chain decisions.
Economic uncertainty and import tariffs can lead retailers to delay, reduce, or time hires more closely to when staff are actually needed for seasonal work.
high
timeless
Macroeconomic and trade policy conditions influence firms' staffing decisions for seasonal periods.
Governments may use tariffs, sanctions, and export controls as policy tools to restrict another country's access to markets or technology.
high
temporal
Describes common economic and national-security tools available to states in bilateral trade disputes.
Tariff policy can be designed to incentivize domestic vehicle manufacturing by imposing duties on imported vehicles and parts while offering credits to manufacturers that import parts for use in domestic assembly, with credit amounts tied to the proportion of parts imported.
high
policy_mechanism
Governments use tariffs and targeted credit mechanisms to influence sourcing and encourage domestic production.
Importers typically bear the initial legal cost of tariffs but commonly pass at least some of those added expenses onto consumers through higher prices.
high
descriptive
Pass-through of tariff costs from firms to consumers varies by industry, market structure, and firm pricing strategies.
Tariffs can exert upward pressure on consumer prices and thereby contribute to higher measured inflation.
high
descriptive
Tariffs raise the cost of imported goods directly and can lead firms to raise prices, affecting headline and core inflation measures.
Tariffs on imported goods can cause businesses to raise consumer prices by passing some or all of the import tax costs onto consumers.
high
mechanism
General effect of import tariffs on consumer prices via cost pass-through.
Governments sometimes use tariffs as leverage to encourage foreign investment or to obtain concessions from trading partners.
high
policy
Tariffs are a trade policy tool that can be deployed to influence the economic behavior of other countries.
Tariffs and retaliatory tariffs are common tools in international trade policy that governments use to exert economic pressure or respond to trade measures taken by other countries.
high
general
Tariffs and counter-tariffs are frequently deployed during trade disputes and negotiations between countries.
Tariffs and export controls are common policy tools used by countries to influence trade relationships and to apply economic pressure during trade disputes.
high
general
Governments employ tariffs and export restrictions to protect domestic industries or to gain leverage in negotiations.
Tariffs are a policy tool used by governments to tax imports in order to boost domestic manufacturing or to seek more favorable trade terms.
high
descriptive
Tariffs are commonly used as part of trade and industrial policy.
The scope of a U.S. president's unilateral authority to impose tariffs can be legally contested and may be limited or clarified by U.S. Supreme Court decisions.
high
descriptive
Legal challenges can affect executive trade authorities and how tariffs are implemented.
Tariffs on imports tend to raise the prices paid by domestic consumers who purchase those imported goods.
high
economic
Typical economic effect of import tariffs on domestic prices.
The International Emergency Economic Powers Act can be invoked by the U.S. president to exercise emergency economic authorities that have been used to impose tariffs on foreign goods.
high
temporal
Describes a statutory mechanism by which a U.S. president can assert emergency economic powers to regulate international commerce.
Tariffs can be used as leverage in trade negotiations to attempt to obtain more favorable trade deals.
high
temporal
Describes a policy rationale for employing duties on imports as a negotiating tool in international trade.
Imposed tariffs typically raise costs for domestic consumers and can negatively affect domestic producers and sectors such as agriculture and distilling.
high
temporal
Summarizes common economic effects of import duties and retaliatory tariffs on domestic prices and industry sectors.
Tariffs, sanctions, and export controls are commonly used by governments as retaliatory measures in trade disputes.
high
general
Trade disputes frequently involve a mix of tariffs, targeted sanctions, and limits on exports of strategic goods or technologies.
Tariff measures can materially influence agricultural trade flows; changes in tariff policy have been associated with shifts in purchases of commodities such as soybeans and beef between major trading partners like the United States and China.
high
descriptive
General relationship between tariffs and agricultural export patterns
Tariffs are a policy tool that governments use as economic leverage in international trade negotiations and to create incentives for domestic production and investment.
high
economic
General economic rationale for imposing tariffs.
Tariffs can negatively impact industries such as aluminum, steel, automotive, and lumber.
high
economic
General economic effect of import tariffs on specific manufacturing and resource sectors.
High tariffs can provoke retaliation by foreign countries and trigger trade wars.
high
economic
Describes a common international-trade dynamic where protectionist measures elicit countermeasures.
Tariffs are trade policy tools that governments can use to exert economic leverage, influence trade negotiations, or pursue national security objectives.
high
policy
Summarizes common uses and rationales for imposing tariffs in international trade policy.
Tariffs imposed on imports are generally borne by the importer rather than by the foreign exporter.
medium
economic
Incidence of import tariffs commonly falls on the party that brings goods into the imposing country, affecting domestic pricing and costs.
Tariffs are used by governments as a policy tool for economic leverage and can be justified on national security grounds.
high
policy
Common rationales governments cite when imposing tariffs
Tariffs are taxes imposed on imported goods.
high
temporal
Definition of tariffs in international trade and taxation.
Tariffs are a form of tax imposed on imported goods and can raise revenue for the federal government.
high
economic
General description of the fiscal nature and function of tariffs.
Tariffs function as a form of taxation that generate revenue, and the power to tax is a congressional power rather than a presidential power.
high
constitutional
General characterization of tariffs and the allocation of taxing power between Congress and the president.
Tariffs imposed by an importing country on a major exporter can reduce imports of that commodity into the importing country.
high
temporal
General effect of trade tariffs on import volumes
The Trump administration has maintained the policy position that tariffs do not increase consumer prices.
medium
policy_position
Some administrations publicly assert that import tariffs do not translate into higher prices for consumers.
Economic studies and evidence indicate that tariffs generally increase consumer prices.
high
economic
Empirical research on trade policy shows import taxes are often passed through to retail prices.
Lowering tariffs generally increases imports of the affected goods.
high
economic
Reducing import levies makes foreign goods relatively cheaper, which tends to raise import volumes.
Tariffs on imported goods can contribute to higher consumer prices for the affected products.
high
causal
Trade-policy mechanism by which import duties can raise costs passed on to consumers.
Removing or reducing tariffs can increase the supply of imported goods entering a market and can potentially lower consumer prices for those goods.
high
causal
Trade-policy change that affects import supply and consumer prices.
Tariffs on imports are paid by importers who typically attempt to pass the higher costs to their customers, which can contribute to higher consumer prices and inflation.
high
conceptual
General economic effect of import tariffs on prices and inflation.
Tariffs are taxes on imported goods that can raise federal government revenue.
high
policy
General description of the fiscal effect of import tariffs.