President Donald Trump outlined a sweeping tariff plan with 10% baseline tariffs on all imports and steep escalations for specific trading partners, including a 34% tax on imports from China and 20% on imports from the EU. Trump said the tariffs are aimed at boosting US manufacturing by addressing trade imbalances, but the move, which was declared under a national economic emergency, has drawn criticism for potentially increasing consumer prices and sparking trade wars.

Motion, a distributor of maintenance, repair and operations replacement parts owned by Genuine Parts Co., has been actively acquiring companies this year despite a general slowdown in distribution mergers and acquisitions. The company has added M.B. McKee and Maguire Bearing, expanding its reach in Texas and Hawaii and strengthening its market position. The strategy is expected to bolster its operations and financial performance.

National Oak Distributors, a distributor of automotive parts, and Integrated Supply Network, an automotive tools, equipment and supplies distributor, have completed a merger that allows the combined entity to offer a more extensive product selection and enhance its geographic reach and distribution capabilities. Geoffrey Peckham, founder and CEO of National Oak, will be CEO and chairman of the merged entity.

The US trade deficit stood at $122.7 billion in February, marking a 6.1% reduction from the all-time high the previous month, according to data from the Commerce Department. Imports remained steady at $401.1 billion, having increased significantly since November, driven by businesses stockpiling goods to avoid tariff increases.

About 46% of supply chain leaders have adopted AI, particularly in logistics and transportation, with unified platforms delivering 3.5 times greater adoption rates and return on investment than isolated solutions, according to a Deposco and Fulfillment IQ study. AI-driven solutions have also reduced transportation costs by as much as 10% and improved delivery reliability by 20%.

Aurora has released a Driverless Safety Report detailing safety engineering, cybersecurity and risk management ahead of a planned launch of fully driverless trucks on Texas highways this month. The company is working with partners including FedEx and Uber Freight, but some traffic safety experts are concerned with the lack of specific failure data in the report.

B2B marketers are upping ad budgets despite significant ad waste and targeting challenges, according to a Demandbase and eMarketer report. The report notes the importance of account-based marketing and AI to improve targeting, personalization and ROI. Social media, especially LinkedIn, remains a key investment area, and AI is being used for content creation and data insights.

Senate Republicans have introduced a new budget blueprint that could pave the way for more than $5 trillion in tax cuts over the next decade. The plan postpones decisions on spending reductions and uses an accounting method that assumes extending the 2017 tax cuts would have no fiscal impact. It represents a key step in advancing President Donald Trump's agenda -- including tax cuts, border security, and national defense -- but differs from a competing House proposal. The Senate is expected to vote on the budget later this week.

The National Association of Wholesaler-Distributors supports the Senate's advancement of a budget resolution with a strong commitment to pro-business policies. "We are encouraged to see continued support for President Trump's tax policy, which has fueled economic expansion, empowered American businesses, and supported working families," NAW said in a statement. "This budget resolution is essential to preventing a massive, automatic tax hike on Americans. Importantly, it also lays the groundwork for Congress to make the Trump Tax Cuts permanent for small businesses and workers."

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