Reuters World News - UPDATE- Trump’s tariffs struck down by Supreme Court

Episode Date: February 20, 2026

*This podcast has been updated for the latest news that the U.S. Supreme court has rejected President Trump's sweeping global tariffs, and that the president is vowing new 10% duties.   Andrew Mountbatten‑Windsor is photographed slumped in the back of a car after police release him under investigation following his arrest on suspicion of misconduct in public office. Iran faces a deadline from U.S. President Donald Trump to strike a nuclear deal. Find our recommended listen ⁠⁠here⁠⁠. Listen to the Morning Bid podcast ⁠⁠⁠⁠here⁠⁠⁠⁠. Sign up for the Reuters Econ World newsletter ⁠⁠⁠⁠here⁠⁠⁠⁠. Listen to the Reuters Econ World podcast ⁠⁠⁠⁠here⁠⁠⁠⁠. Visit the ⁠⁠Thomson Reuters Privacy Statement⁠⁠ for information on our privacy and data protection practices. You may also visit ⁠⁠megaphone.fm/adchoices⁠⁠ to opt out of targeted advertising. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Hi, I'm Kim Vennel in Wanganui, New Zealand. And I'm Evan Jacoby in New York. It's Friday, February 20th, today. The U.S. Supreme Court strikes down Trump's tariffs, handing the president a stinging defeat. A visibly shaken former Prince Andrew is photographed slumped in the back of his range rover after being released from police custody. Trump gives Iran a deadline of sorts to agree to a nuclear deal. And Alyssa Liu tops off a remarkable comeback in women's figure skating, winning a long-awaited gold for the U.S. This is Reuters World News, bringing you everything you need to know from the front lines, 10 minutes, seven days a week. The court said that I'm not allowed to charge even $1, I can't charge $1.

A stinging rebuke for President Donald Trump on Friday, as his global tariffs are knocked down six to three by the Supreme Court, with two of the votes coming from Trump appointees. How ridiculous is that I'm allowed to embargo them? I'm allowed to tell them you can't do business in the United States anymore. We want you out of here. But if I want to charge him $10, I can't do that. The justices said that Trump needed approval from Congress in order to impose his sweeping tariffs, and he didn't have it. Despite the blow, Trump is vowing to continue his economic policy through other means. Now I'm going to go in a different direction, probably the direction that I should have gone

the first time, but I read the language. I'm very good at reading language, and it read our way 100%, but now I'll go the way I could have gone originally, which is even stronger than our original choice. He says he's ordering a 10% global tariff to replace the duties that the court struck down, and he warned refunds will take years. The U.S. economy was far more sluggish than expected in the fourth quarter of 2025, with government spending posting its biggest decline in growth since 1972, according to data release Friday.

Trump posted about the figures on social media before their official release, a breach of protocol around sensitive economic data. He blamed the government shutdown for costing at least two points in, GDP. The report paints a picture of what's called a K-shaped economy, with upper-income households spending freely, while lower-income Americans struggle with high prices and stalling wage growth. The data suggests any rate cuts would be unlikely until at least June. For the latest market news and analysis, make sure to follow our sister podcast MorningBid. We'll have the link in the show notes. A tinted SUV leaves an English police station.

the brother of the country's king, Andrew Mountbatten, Windsor. Reuters photographs show the beleaguered royal attempting to lie back in the back seat, as news of his arrest turns anger over his Epstein links into an unprecedented royal scandal. He was arrested on suspicion of misconduct in public office, accused of sending confidential government documents to the late sex offender when he was a trade envoy for the UK. Andrew has always denied any wrongdoing in relation to Epstein and that he regrets their friendship.

Police say he was released under investigation after questioning. Reuters' chief correspondent Michael Holden is in London. Misconduct in the public office is quite a tricky one because it's unlike other criminal offences, this is a common law offence. And by that, that means it's not a written statute law. I mean, it's obviously very unlikely he'd ever, even if he was found guilty, he'd do life in prison or anything like that. But the sort of offence that he's likely to perhaps be charged could potentially carry a prison sentence.

A few hours after Andrew was arrested, which happened on his 66th birthday, his brother, King Charles, appeared at a fashion show and was met with applause. Michael says the King has distanced himself from Andrew ever since his brother's Epstein. links first came to light, but that may not be enough. King Charles put out a statement quite soon after he was arrested, saying that he was deeply concerned about it and saying no one was above the law and that's there to let the authorities do what was necessary. So it was quite a pointed statement. They are concerned about it, that this could damage to the monarchy beyond just Andrew

himself. A few years ago, he stepped down from Royal Duty, Andrew stepped down from Royal duties. together, then as allegations kept on and on coming, he's been stripped of his princely title and, in fact, all his titles, all his honours, and he's been forced to move out of his mansion that he used to live on the Windsor Castle estate. There's not really very much more he can do to sort of disown him beyond what he has done. Family of prominent Prince Andrew and Epstein accuser Virginia Jifrey say they feel vindicated by the Royal's arrest. Virginia Jafray died by suicide in 2025. She had long accused Andrew of sexual

assault, saying it happened both at Epstein's mansion and on his private island. She settled a lawsuit with Andrew in 2022, but the details were kept secret. Amanda Roberts, Virginia's sister-in-law, says the news feels bittersweet. And it was such a mixed. bag of emotions. I think initially we were like vindicated and screaming at one point at 3 a.m. And then, you know, it just hits you that gut punch of the fact that she's not here to see this, that we're not able to call her and tell her how like astronomically proud we are of her. Virginia's brother, Sky Roberts, says while the allegation Andrews been arrested over does not relate to sexual assault, he still has hope.

I think we're very hopeful that this is the start of the domino effect. This is where the house of cards starts falling. And you can see those extraordinary photos of the former prince on the Reuters website or by downloading the app. US President Donald Trump is giving Iran an ultimatum make a deal over its nuclear program within the next 10 to 15 days or, quote, really bad things will happen. They can't have a nuclear weapon's very simple. They can't have, you can't have peace in the Middle East if they have a nuclear weapon.

Trump was speaking at the first meeting of his Board of Peace, a world body he's created with himself at the helm, aimed at solving the world's biggest crises. White House reporter Steve Holland says Trump's Iran deadline is new, but that doesn't mean it's hard and fast. It wasn't really a firm deadline, and he is, in Trump, can always be a little loose with dates and things like that.

But it does sound like he's getting close to some kind of decision on whether to use military force. The U.S. has rapidly built up forces in the Middle East in recent days to give Trump the option of a strike. Meanwhile, Russia is coming to Iran's side, conducting joint naval drills in the Sea of Oman. Russia says the point is to deter any unilateral action in the region. West Virginia is,

suing Apple. The state says child sexual abuse material is being housed and distributed on Apple's iCloud service. The state's attorney general says Apple prioritized user privacy over child safety, filing just a few hundred abuse reports in 2023. That's in contrast with Google, which filed almost 1.5 million, while Meta filed more than 30 million. The lawsuit cites internal Apple messages describing the company as the greatest platform for distributing child porn. Apple says it has safety features in place and is innovating to combat threats. Now some happy news to end today's episode. Well, happy for Americans, at least.

Elisa Liu has won Olympic gold, breaking a 20-year drought for the US in women's figure skating and capping a remarkable comeback story. She had stepped away from the sport after the 2020. two Beijing games, when at 16, she said she'd burned out and lost her love for skating. She came back, she says, on her own terms and with more creative control. Skating to Donna Summer's MacArthur Park, Lou moved with confidence in Milan in a gold dress and her now famous, dark and blonde horizontally striped hair. And of course, a huge grin on her face.

We have a recommended listen rather than a recommended read for your first. Friday. Next week marks four years since Russia launched its invasion of Ukraine. We want to send you over to our sister podcast, On Assignment, where we'll be looking at the war from the perspective of two of our journalists. Hear how the war has changed their lives and their jobs. That podcast drops tomorrow. Make sure to subscribe to On Assignment wherever you get your podcasts or download the Reuters app so you never miss an episode. For more on any of the stories from today, Reuters.com or the Reuters app. Don't forget to follow us on your favourite podcast player. If you're listening on a smart speaker, just ask for the latest news from Reuters seven days a week.

We'll be back tomorrow with our daily headline show.