U.S. Walmart store [Reuters Yonhap News]

The U.S. Donald Trump administration has completed the refund of $20.6 billion (approximately 30.8 trillion won) of "reciprocal tariffs" (tariffs imposed by country at differential rates) deemed unlawfully collected, ABC News reported on the 28th (local time), citing court filings.

This amount accounts for 24.2% of the $85 billion for which refunds were approved. U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP), which collects tariffs, has stated that it may have to refund up to $166 billion to over 330,000 importers. Based on this, the refund rate is 12.4%.

The Trump administration began refunding tariffs on the 12th. This is nearly three months after the Federal Supreme Court ruled on February 28th that imposing reciprocal tariffs and fentanyl tariffs (tariffs imposed on China, Mexico, etc., for failing to cooperate in blocking fentanyl imports into the U.S.) based on the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) was unlawful.

During a conference call last week, Walmart's Chief Financial Officer, John Rainey, announced plans to lower consumer prices by utilizing the expected $2.4 billion in refunds.

Major consumer goods retailers, including Walmart, Costco, Home Depot, General Motors (GM), and Apple, are in the process of refunding tariffs.

Logistics giants UPS, FedEx, and DHL have stated their plans to refund directly to their major customers. UPS recently provided guidance on its website for importers to claim tariff refunds.

However, it is unlikely that consumers who have already purchased products with tariffs reflected will receive direct refunds. According to the Tax Foundation, tariffs imposed an average additional cost of $700 per household on Americans last year.

In an interview with WABC News on the day tariff refunds began, President Trump called the tariff refund situation "crazy" and said, "We will fight against it."

In response to the ruling on the illegality of reciprocal tariffs, the Trump administration is imposing a global tariff of 10% based on Section 122 of the trade act. While lawsuits related to this are also ongoing (with the Trump administration losing in the first instance), Jamieson Greear, Acting U.S. Trade Representative (USTR), hinted at the possibility of re-imposing it when the 150-day deadline expires in July.

While these "temporary measures" are being used to offset the burden of reciprocal tariff refunds, the USTR is conducting Section 301 investigations against major countries to fundamentally replace reciprocal tariffs.