UPDATE: Less than 24 hours after a three-judge panel on the Court of International Trade unanimously struck down most of President Donald Trump’s tariffs imposed since April 2, a federal appeals court granted the Trump administration’s request on May 29 to temporarily pause the previous day’s ruling, reinstating the import duties “until further notice.” Administration officials have said that the president remains committed to imposing tariffs and may pursue other options should the courts not decide in their favor.
A federal court has blocked many of the tariffs imposed this year, ruling that President Donald Trump has overstepped his authority by regulating commerce with other countries.
The U.S. Constitution grants only Congress the authority to do that, and the president’s emergency powers don’t supersede it, according to the Court of International Trade.
In a unanimous ruling on Wednesday, the three-judge panel issued a permanent injunction, immediately preventing enforcement of:
- Trump’s 30% tariffs on China
- his 25% tariffs on Canadian and Mexican imports not covered by the USMCA
- the 10% baseline tariff on all imports
- and the currently paused reciprocal tariffs on dozens of countries.
However, the 25% tariffs on steel, aluminum and automotive imports remain in effect because they were subject to a different law – Section 232 of the Trade Expansion Act.
RELATED: Download ‘Tariffs & Trade 101’ To Learn More About The Hottest Issue In Promo
The court’s ruling means that the federal government may have to pay back duties it has already collected from importers, Politico reported. “Anybody that has had to pay tariffs so far will be able to get them refunded,” said Ilya Somin, a professor of law at George Mason University, who helped argue a case against the tariffs brought by several small businesses.
The Trump administration, which has 10 calendar days “to effectuate the permanent injunction,” immediately appealed the decision on Wednesday night. The case could potentially go right to the Supreme Court.
Although many promo leaders may react positively to the ruling, it also adds more uncertainty as the industry awaits the government’s response, according to Yuhling Lu, CEO of Ariel Premium Supply, the 2025 PPAI 100’s No. 10 supplier.
Yuhling Lu
CEO, Ariel Premium Supply
“Like so much of the last few months, we still need to wait and see,” Lu says. “Events have been so fluid and constantly changing. For this reason – as of today – there’s no change to our strategy, but we’ll be working with all of our international partners to remain flexible and keep all of our options open.”
Exceeding Authority
Citing undocumented immigration and the transnational illicit drug trade, Trump declared a national emergency, thereby utilizing his authority under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act in order to levy the tariffs.
Although the statute gives the president broad powers to take economic actions upon declaring a national emergency, the law doesn’t include any mention of tariffs as a potential action the president can take once IEEPA is invoked.
WATCH: PPAI Hosts Industry Leaders For Tariff & Trade Webinar
“IEEPA doesn’t authorize any of the worldwide, retaliatory or trafficking tariff orders,” the panel of judges said in their order Wednesday. “The worldwide and retaliatory tariff orders exceed any authority granted to the President by IEEPA to regulate importation by means of tariffs. The trafficking tariffs fail because they don’t deal with the threats set forth in those orders.”
The ruling covers a case brought by legal advocacy group Liberty Justice Center, which represented several small businesses that claimed they had been severely harmed by the tariffs, as well as a case filed by Oregon and 11 other states challenging the constitutionality of Trump’s sweeping tariffs.
Promo Perspective
Global trade volatility has significantly impacted the promotional products industry, stunting sales growth through the first four months of 2025, increasing pricing, creating “supply shocks” and forcing companies to change their sourcing strategies.
“This ruling will allow suppliers similar to SnugZ USA some additional time to evaluate the resourcing efforts of some China-based items and additionally help us hold pricing where possible,” says Brandon Mackay, MAS, president, CEO and owner of SnugZ USA, the No. 6 supplier in the 2025 PPAI 100.
Brandon Mackay, MAS
President/CEO, SnugZ USA
“This does cause our pricing team additional work, but for now, as this plays out in court, we’ll use this time wisely to put SnugZ USA in a better long-term sourcing position.”
As Mackay alluded to, this most recent ruling won’t be the last word on the matter. If history is any indication, the Trump administration will fight the court’s decision and most likely seek alternative measures to carry out its trade policy.
Trevor Gnesin
Owner, Logomark
“Unfortunately, we have to work in the moment and deal with changes as they’re confirmed by the administration,” says Trevor Gnesin, owner of Logomark, the 2025 PPAI 100’s No. 12 supplier. “It’s a freaking nightmare as one doesn’t want to over commit, but on the other hand, we can’t under commit. It has become very strategic to say the least.”
Because the conversation around tariffs continues to change so quickly, many promo firms have no choice but to take a wait-and-see approach before making any drastic changes.
“At this point, we’re in a holding pattern waiting for the results of the appeal before we take any action,” says Jake Himelstein, president of BAMKO, the No. 4 distributor in the 2025 PPAI 100. “We want to get closer to finality before we reverse tariffs we’ve already charged our clients or revise pricing on in-process orders.”
Jake Himelstein
President, BAMKO
Kara Keister, MAS, owner of Ohio-based distributor Social Good Promotions and Regional Relations Committee delegate to the PPAI Board, says that for now, and possibly as an ongoing policy, her team will stay the course.
“We’ll [continue to] check country of origin on all orders, request details from suppliers when we need clarification or visibility into the supply chain and make our sourcing calls based on the best interest of our clients and their brands,” says Keister, who participated in PPAI’s webinar on tariffs and trade earlier this month.
Kara Keister, MAS
Owner, Social Good Promotions
Memo Kahan, CEO of PromoShop, the No. 20 distributor in the 2025 PPAI 100, echoes that sentiment.
“It continues to be a weekly change of policy and activities, and there’s no solid trajectory we can all take,” Kahan says. “We’re staying the course with our clients and suppliers, using full transparency and, unfortunately, some vagueness on the things we can’t control that keep changing!”
Although Joseph Sommer, founder and CEO of Whitestone, the No. 34 distributor in the 2025 PPAI 100, considers the ruling a small win for small businesses, he says it’s merely the start of a new chapter in what’s already been a five-month saga.
“While the Trump-era tariffs may now be rolled back by the courts, I’m reminded that tariffs themselves aren’t going anywhere and now my hope is that this ruling creates space for calmer, more strategic policymaking,” says Sommer, who also participated in the webinar.
Joseph Sommer
Founder/CEO, Whitestone
As for what this means practically, Sommer says the ripples are already in motion:
- Suppliers have adjusted inventories, rethought pricing and reevaluated shipping strategies.
- Freight costs will likely remain elevated, and stock may still be tight heading into Q3 and Q4.
“And for those of us who have already paid the tariffs… What now? Will there be refunds? Credits? We’re watching closely for next steps and will continue to stay informed so we can guide our clients with clarity,” Sommer says.
PPAI’s Stance
PPAI, which has long supported free trade, has been working diligently to monitor the chaos and communicate with elected officials to make sure the economic impact on PPAI members is understood.
“We’ve been closely tracking this issue and actively engaging through advocacy channels to ensure policymakers understand the full impact – especially on businesses in the promotional merchandise sector,” says Drew Holmgreen, president and CEO of PPAI. “This ruling supports the needs of companies, both large and small, and reinforces our industry’s critical role as a core driver of brand marketing.”
Drew Holmgreen
President & CEO, PPAI
- Tariff concerns were one of the key issues discussed with members of Congress during PPAI’s Legislative Education and Action Day in April.
- Chris Lamond, partner at Thorn Run Partners, PPAI’s lobbying and advocacy partner, participated in a Q&A on tariffs and other matters during PPAI’s North American Leadership Conference earlier this month.
PPAI Board Chair Denise Taschereau, CEO of Canadian distributor Fairware Promotional Products, adds that while the court’s decision may offer short-term relief, the reality is that tariff uncertainty is here to stay – at least for the foreseeable future.
“As a Canadian distributor, we’ve learned to adapt to this new ‘usual,’ where pricing volatility and shifting trade policies are part of our everyday risk management,” Taschereau says. “We’ll continue to work closely with our supplier partners to mitigate disruptions and deliver great merch to our clients.”
Denise Taschereau
PPAI Board Chair & CEO of Fairware
For questions or suggestions on regulatory or government affairs issues, please contact Rachel Zoch at RachelZ@ppai.org.
