U.S. President Donald Trump hiked nearly all of his tariffs on steel and aluminum imports to a punishing 50% on Wednesday in a move that’s set to hammer businesses from automakers to home builders, and likely push up prices for consumers even further.

China has accused President Donald Trump of causing severe disruption to global supply chains after he doubled the United States' steel and aluminum tariffs to 50 percent. Trump hiked the Section 232 tariffs in a proclamation that took effect on June 4,

South Korea and the United States are expected to accelerate working-level tariff negotiations after President Lee Jae-myung and U.S. President Donald Trump agreed to swiftly reach a mutually satisfactory agreement during their first phone conversation since Lee took office.

South Korea said newly elected President Lee Jae-myung spoke for the first time with Donald Trump and agreed to seek “tangible results” in trade negotiations, after the US leader imposed a 25% tariff on all imports from its Asian ally.

Trump allies have aired concerns about Lee's more conciliatory stance towards China, Washington's main geopolitical rival.

Earlier this month, Trump threatened Mattel with a 100% tariff on all its toy imports after Mattel CEO Ynon Kreiz said the company would have to consider raising some toy prices due to tariffs and that it wouldn’t shift toy production to the United States, as that would be more expensive than paying the tariffs.

Even before Donald Trump’s “Liberation Day” tariffs on April 2nd, the median estimate among the 48 who were surveyed by the University of Chicago’s business school was that Mr Trump’s levies would raise inflation in 2025 by 0.

President Donald Trump’s sweeping tariff plan would cut deficits by $2.8 trillion over a 10-year period while shrinking the economy, raising the inflation rate and reducing the purchasing power of households overall.

The president cited figures from the Congressional Budget Office to suggest tariffs could offset the cost of tax cuts, though he omitted important caveats for why that may not be the case.