Major US Tariff Rates Take Effect; Trump-Putin Summit Scheduled

<p>1) President Trump's tariffs take effect at their highest levels since World War 2. President Trump&rsquo;s actions will push the average US tariff rate to 15.2%, according to Bloomberg Economics estimates, with some countries facing duties as high as 50%. The president has pledged that the tariffs will slash trade deficits and push companies to move manufacturing back to the US, but his critics say they could cause inflation to spiral out of control and cause shortages on store shelves.<br />2) The Kremlin said Presidents Vladimir Putin and Donald Trump will meet for summit talks within the next few days. President Trump said there was a "very good chance" he would meet with Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy soon in another bid to broker peace between the two countries.<br />3) The president slaps significant levies on semiconductors &mdash; with a key exemption. President Trump declared plans to slap a 100% tariff on semiconductor imports, but promised to exempt companies that move production back to the US. Companies that demonstrate a commitment to building in the US, such as Apple, will be exempt from tariffs on chips, according to Trump.</p><p>See <a href="https://omnystudio.com/listener">omnystudio.com/listener</a> for privacy information.</p>