By Susan Heavey and Lisa Baertlein
WASHINGTON/LOS ANGELES, Feb 25 (Reuters) - FedEx FDX.N should explain how it will pass along any tariff rebates to consumers, U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said after the global shipping company sued for a refund of emergency import duties ruled illegal by the U.S. Supreme Court.
Bessent, in an interview with NBC News late on Tuesday, also questioned FedEx CEO Raj Subramaniam's role in the U.S.-China Business Council but offered no evidence of any wrongdoing. FedEx, along with scores of other U.S. companies, are members of the business group.
On Monday, FedEx filed a lawsuit in the U.S. Court of International Trade seeking a refund after the Supreme Court ruled last week that President Donald Trump had exceeded his authority in imposing sweeping emergency tariffs.
French beauty group L'Oreal OREP.PA, British vacuum manufacturer Dyson and contact lens maker Bausch + Lomb BLCO.TO have also sued for refunds.
Subramaniam should "explain how he's going to get the money back to the consumers if he, in fact, passed those costs along," Bessent told NBC, according to a transcript provided by the network early on Wednesday.
Bessent added that he found the company's role in the council "very interesting because China is the largest payer of U.S. tariffs," without elaborating.
That remark contradicted a New York Federal Reserve report earlier this month that showed Americans are shouldering almost all of Trump's new tariffs.
FedEx has posted an alert at the top of its website for customers on how the court's ruling may impact customers.
Asked about Bessent's comments, a spokeswoman for the company told Reuters: "If refunds are issued to FedEx, we will issue refunds to the shippers and consumers who originally bore those charges. When that will happen and the exact process for requesting and issuing refunds will depend in part on future guidance from the government and the court."
Overall, more than $175 billion in U.S. tariff collections are subject to potential refunds. Bessent on Sunday told CNN that any refunds would be up to lower courts following the Supreme Court ruling.
Asked if the Trump administration was prepared to issue refunds if ordered to, Bessent told NBC Tuesday night: "We will follow the ruling of the lower court."
(Reporting by Susan Heavey in Washington and Lisa Baertlein in Los Angeles; Editing by Paul Simao)
((sheavey@thomsonreuters.com; +1-202-898-8300;))
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