This is no small hike. Today the White House has taken a trade war to the next level that will hit Americans hard in the wallet. Stock markets are bracing too. At midnight tariffs were hiked up from 10% to 25$ on $200 billion dollars of Chinese goods. This means soon things like toys, appliances, bicycles and even certain fish and veggies could cost more. And Donald Trump warned this could just be the beginning. He says he is “starting the paperwork” to expand tariffs to include all Chinese goods, $325 billion worth.
And it’s not the Chinese who will feel the price pain, it’s Americans. The costs are actually passed along to people here in the U.S. NPR points out:
This latest round of tariffs will add another $500 a year in costs for the average American household, says Katheryn Russ, an economics professor at the University of California at Davis. And that could grow. President Trump has pledged to broaden tariffs even further to all Chinese imports — including big ticket items. “Once the tariffs go onto cell phones, I mean then you’re going to see people scream,” she says.
Trump put out a series of tweets this morning about the tariffs, that are being debunked.
In one tweet he said, “Tariffs will bring in FAR MORE wealth to our country than even a phenomenal deal of the traditional kind. Also, much easier & quicker to do. Our Farmers will do better, faster, and starving nations can now be helped.”
Bloomberg says certain American workers may find their jobs impacted as well:
Some American industries were quick to decry Trump’s decision, which will hurt some of his key political constituencies, including farmers and manufacturers.
The tariffs will “suppress job gains for the industry by as much as 400,000 over 10 years. It will also invite China to hit back at American businesses, farmers, communities, and families,” said Kip Eideberg, vice president of government affairs for the Association of Equipment Manufacturers.
Beijing has pledged to retaliate if Trump follows through with Friday’s tariff hike and could increase or expand import taxes on U.S. crops. American farmers have been hit with huge losses from previous tariffs in the trade war, and further import taxes on their China-bound goods could compound the harm of plunging commodity prices and falling foreign orders.