Small businesses push for exemptions from Trump tariffs

Small businesses are begging for relief from steep new U.S. tariffs on foreign goods, saying the higher import taxes imposed on dozens of key trading partners 

Senator Ed Markey, ranking member of the U.S. Senate Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship, said in a letter to the Small Business Administration (SBA) on Friday that smaller enterprises deserve exemptions from the Trump administration's tariffs, which the Massachusetts Democrat criticized as "recklessly imposed."

Markey also noted that the Trump administration has moved to shield corporate giants such as Apple and Google from the impact of some its trade policies, and he pressed the White House to protect small businesses. The U.S. earlier this month moved to exempt smartphones, computers and other high-tech products from the new tariffs, a boon to major tech manufacturers.