One such workaround will take effect later this month, when the Trump administration imposes 25% tariffs on many imports from Brazil. The fresh tariffs, announced this week, arrived after the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative conducted a yearlong investigation under Section 301 of the Trade Act of 1974 that concluded Brazil had engaged in unfair trade practices.

The move revives a battle the Trump administration has waged specifically against Brazil since last year, when the White House imposed tariffs totaling 50% on certain Brazilian imports after Brazil’s former president, Jair Bolsonaro, was accused of leading a conspiracy to overturn his reelection loss in 2022. Bolsonaro was later sentenced to 27 years in prison.

Still, the administration’s actions against Brazil may also be the beginning of an alternate plan to implement tariffs in line with the President’s wishes despite the questionable effectiveness of such duties so far, experts say.

Tariff disappointment

Since the Supreme Court ruled in February that Trump could not use the International Emergency Economic Powers Act, or IEEPA, to impose tariffs, importers have been issued about $71 billion in refunds, according to the U.S. Treasury’s monthly statement. With $166 billion in refunds set to be paid out in total—and domestic manufacturing having increased a measly 1.1% year-over-year as of June—Trump’s tariffs are turning out to be more of a drag than a boon for government revenues, said James Knightley, ING’s chief international economist.

“The hope was tariffs were going to be a big revenue raiser, and right now it appears that actually tariffs are going to be potentially a loser through the second half of this year,” Knightley told Fortune.

It’s these very lackluster results thus far that may motivate the administration to push even harder to implement its tariffs, Knightley added. 

Just after the Supreme Court struck down many of Trump’s tariffs in February, he implemented a temporary 10% global import surcharge citing section 122 of the Trade Act of 1974, though this measure lasts only 150 days and expires later this month.

The administration is now taking a slower but potentially more lasting approach: investigating countries’ trade practices under Section 301 of the Trade Act of 1974, like it did with Brazil.

The method, although it requires a sometimes slow-moving investigation and gives businesses an opportunity to comment, is effective. Trump used this approach several times during his first stint in office, including to impose 25% tariffs on roughly $250 billion worth of Chinese imports. Although challenged, Trump’s tariffs on China using this method were not struck down by the courts.

Once an investigation is completed, the tariff rates can also be adjusted without restarting the entire process, Melissa Irmen, the director of advocacy for the National Association of Foreign-Trade Zones, told Fortune.

“If you set the tariff at say 15% and it’s deemed that it needs to be modified, then changing it to 30% isn’t the same involved process,” she said.

The administration has proposed tariffs on dozens of trading partners, including the European Union, following investigations into their enforcement of bans on goods made with forced labor. This could mean Brazil is only the first of many economies to be affected by fresh tariffs.

Business effects

That doesn’t mean the new duties will be immune from lawsuits. Irmen said lawsuits could look to argue the administration failed to prove a foreign practice harmed the U.S. economy. They could also question whether tariffs would remedy the alleged harm.

Regardless, importers are tired of the uncertainty. After the rapid tariff implementations under IEEPA imposed last year, companies had to scramble to comply, she said. Just like last time, businesses could once again pay duties for months or years, only to again seek refunds if courts strike them down.

“We may have the same situation where tariffs are implemented, tariffs are collected for a period of time, and by the time the court decision happens, if it does go the way IEEPA went, we may have to see another refund process again,” Irmen said.

Longer investigations may give businesses more time to prepare, but many businesses will still be left wondering what countries or products Trump will target next, throwing a wrench into their long-term planning.

“Uncertainty is just not a good thing in any kind of business planning,” Irmen said.

More tariffs could also raise prices and make it harder for the Federal Reserve to lower interest rates, Knightley added, which would affect businesses overall.

Still, Trump will likely trudge ahead with his tariff plan—even as he has repeatedly insisted the Fed lower rates—because trade policy could soon become one of the only tools left in his arsenal.

Some polls have predicted Democrats may win the House and split the Senate following the midterms. If Republicans lose control of Congress and Trump struggles to pass laws that further his agenda, he may rely more on his executive power, said Knightley.

“If you can’t do tax and spending, you’re going to be more limited to areas where the president has executive powers,” he said. “And trade, of course, is one of those.”

Space Exploration Technologies, popularly known as SpaceX, created history last month when it went public by raising $75 billion, making it the largest initial public offering (IPO) ever.

SpaceX overtook energy and chemicals giant Saudi Aramco, which raised $25.6 billion during its IPO in 2019. However, it didn’t take long for Aramco to slip by one spot with the U.S. listing of South Korean semiconductor giant SK Hynix (SKHY +4.75%) this month.

SK Hynix raised $26.5 billion, and its shares jumped 13% during the company’s Nasdaq debut on July 10. Let’s see what the company plans to do with the proceeds from its share sale and check whether you should buy this semiconductor stock by examining its prospects and valuation.

SK Hynix needs money to build new fabrication facilities

SK Hynix is the second-largest memory manufacturer in the world after Samsung. Its market share of dynamic random-access memory (DRAM) was 29% in Q1. SK Hynix also controlled 18% of the global NAND flash market in the first quarter, according to Counterpoint Research. What’s more, it is the largest player in the high-bandwidth memory (HBM) market with a 58% share.

Today’s Change

(4.75%) $7.24

Current Price

$159.55

Key Data Points

Market Cap

$1.1TMarket cap calculated using publicly traded shares outstanding only. Does not include unlisted, private, or dual-class non-traded shares. Implied market cap may vary.

Day’s Range

$145.61 – $167.36

52wk Range

$145.61 – $194.80

Volume

1.4M

Avg Vol

61.7M

Gross Margin

67.52%

These market share numbers explain why SK Hynix needs to aggressively expand its fabrication capacity to fill the memory supply gap. The company predicts that the overwhelming demand for memory chips won’t stop anytime soon. SK Hynix CEO Kwak Noh-Jung recently told Reuters that the supply crunch will worsen in 2027. He also added that memory demand will continue to exceed SK Hynix’s production capacity into the next decade.

Not surprisingly, SK Hynix is going all out to build additional capacity to meet end-market demand. The company aims to double its wafer production capacity over the next five years. As a result, it intends to invest more than $700 billion over the long run to boost its manufacturing capabilities in South Korea. The proceeds from its U.S. listing will be used to support its expansion plans.

Specifically, SK Hynix intends to use the $26.5 billion raised from its U.S. IPO to construct a new fab and build a new packaging facility in South Korea. It will also purchase advanced extreme ultraviolet (EUV) lithography machines to manufacture cutting-edge chips. These investments are necessary considering that the global memory market’s revenue is projected to increase from $225 billion in 2025 to a whopping $1.28 trillion in 2027, according to market research firm TrendForce.

SK Hynix is in a terrific position to capitalize on this opportunity due to its strong market share and its ambitious expansion plan to address the severe memory shortage. All this makes this semiconductor stock a no-brainer buy right now, given its attractive valuation.

The valuation makes this chip giant a must-buy

SK Hynix’s stock has been volatile in its short life as a U.S.-listed company. However, investors will do well to consider the bigger picture. It trades at just 25.7 times trailing earnings, and the forward earnings multiple of 9 is even more attractive.

The valuation makes it clear that investors are getting a terrific deal on a company whose revenue shot up by 198% year over year in the last reported quarter, and earnings jumped nearly 400%. Moreover, the exponential growth in the memory market should enable SK Hynix to maintain its remarkable momentum, especially as it moves aggressively to capture the trillion-plus-dollar revenue opportunity.

Consensus estimates indicate that its growth trajectory will get better this year, with its 2026 earnings per share estimated to increase by a phenomenal 428%. Given that SK Hynix is trading well below Nasdaq Composite‘s average earnings multiple of 40, now is a great time to buy this growth stock before it steps on the gas and goes on a bull run.