The daily business briefing: August 15, 2018

Turkey doubles tariffs on some U.S. goods, Puerto Rico restores power 11 months after hurricane, and more

Utility workers in Puerto Rico work to restore power
(Image credit: RICARDO ARDUENGO/AFP/Getty Images)

1. Turkey doubles tariffs on some U.S. goods

Turkey on Wednesday doubled tariffs on certain U.S. imports — including cars, alcohol, and tobacco — in what Vice President Fuat Oktay described as a reciprocal move "in response to the U.S. administration's deliberate attacks on our economy." A day earlier, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan called on Turks to boycott American goods after President Trump authorized higher tariffs on aluminum and steel imports from Turkey. The clash escalated tensions between the two countries, which have contributed to a sharp decline in the value of Turkey's currency, the lira, although a fresh move by Turkish banking authorities to support the currency sent it rising by 6 percent. U.S. stock-index futures edged lower early Wednesday as Turkey's currency crisis remained a concern ahead of a flurry of economic reports.

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Harold Maass, The Week US

Harold Maass is a contributing editor at The Week. He has been writing for The Week since the 2001 debut of the U.S. print edition and served as editor of TheWeek.com when it launched in 2008. Harold started his career as a newspaper reporter in South Florida and Haiti. He has previously worked for a variety of news outlets, including The Miami Herald, ABC News and Fox News, and for several years wrote a daily roundup of financial news for The Week and Yahoo Finance.