Good morning!
Here are today’s highlights:
The World Cup’s biggest winner was Main Street, USA.
Business owners face no shortage of challenges, and yet, people keep starting new businesses at unprecedented rates.
Gene Marks suggests two ways to save on taxes when selling a business.
Even as TikTok Shop sparks a wave of side hustles, AI videos threaten to undermine its credibility.
THE TRADE WARS
President Trump’s second round of tariffs expires this week. The next round could arrive at any moment: “After the Supreme Court setback, the president turned first to Section 122 of the Trade Act of 1974 to impose 10-percent tariffs globally. But Section 122 only authorizes tariffs for 150 days. Trump’s expire on July 24. Congress would have to extend those tariffs — something lawmakers are unlikely to do as the Nov. 3 midterm elections approach amid voter discontent over the high cost of living. But the administration has more durable options: Section 301 of the same 1974 trade law permits the president to impose tariffs and other sanctions against countries found to engage in ‘unjustifiable,’ ‘unreasonable.’ ‘discriminatory’ trade practices.”
“Enter Section 301, which gives the president power to impose — and adjust — tariffs in response to other countries’ trade practices. But the administration must first check procedural boxes, collecting comments and holding hearings. There are no limits on Section 301 tariffs. They expire after four years but can be renewed.”
“So the president has flexibility in how he uses the Section 301 tariffs. Trump can still change them — after clearing procedural hurdles — but he can’t impose or move them up or down on a whim as he often did with the IEEPA tariffs. Uncertainty over Trump’s tariff policy has vexed businesses, leaving them hesitant to make investments and decisions because they don’t know what the trade rules are going to be.”
“The Trump administration has turned to two big Section 301 investigations in its campaign to replace lost tariff revenue. One accuses 60 countries, accounting for 99 percent of U.S. imports, of failing to do enough to crack down on imports created by forced labor. The other is investigating whether 16 U.S. trading partners — including China, the European Union, and Japan — are overproducing goods, driving down worldwide prices, and putting American manufacturers at a disadvantage.”
“Trump, who has proudly called himself ‘Tariff Man,’ has made it clear that he is seeking to bring back the big, worldwide import taxes he’d imposed in 2025. So the new 301 investigations look like a pretext to do that and might be vulnerable in court, Bianchi said. ‘Section 301s have been pretty legally durable,’ she said. ‘But no one has tried to use it to basically put in place universal tariffs. I think there will be legal challenges.’” READ MORE
