Trump Claims The World Will Experience US Economic Depression Without Tariffs

JAKARTA - President of the United States (US)Donald Trump emphasized that his government's tariff policy has prevented global economic depression.

Trump also stressed the importance of his country's Supreme Court case discussing the president's emergency authority in implementing trade rates.

"I heard the court hearing went well today," Trump said in an interview with Fox News.

"It will be very devastating for our country if we lose. This is one, perhaps even the most important, in the history of this country," he continued.

The US Supreme Court began the process of hearing arguments in a historic case challenging Trump's use of emergency power to impose a massive tariff in disputes that could potentially change the president's limits to trade policy.

If I don't apply tariffs, the whole world will experience economic depression. This is not a threat to the US alone, but to the whole world. I did it for the world," he said.

Trump claims tariffs against China are critical to stabilizing the global economy.

"I can confirm one thing, if I don't apply the 100 percent tariff directly on China, the whole world - because certain rare earth metals and magnets -will be paralyzed," he added.

Trump also said the meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping was a success thanks to the tariff policy. "Without tariffs, that meeting will not happen," he said.

Trump's tariff policy starts from 10 percent for a number of countries and increases by 50 percent for most products from Brazil and India.

Until the end of fiscal year in September, US tariff revenue reached USD 195 billion (extiary IDR 3,254 trillion). From February to September, around USD 176 billion (around IDR 2,937 trillion) entered the Ministry of Finance.

The day before, Trump called the case a "living or dead" issue for the country, stressing the Supreme Court's decision would have a major impact on US economic and national security.

Parties opposing tariff policies argue that the use of the International Emergency Economic Power Act (IEEPA) to regulate unilateral imports at the global level raises constitutional issues.

However, the Trump administration insists that the reciprocal rates imposed are fully in accordance with the law.

If the Supreme Court rejects Trump's argument, future US presidents will no longer be able to use IEEPA to set tariffs unilaterally.