Trump's Tariffs Will Make These Ordinary Things More Expensive

Ordinary things like cellphones, clothes, shoes and toys imported from China will get more expensive when Trump's tariffs take effect before the holidays.
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President Donald Trump’s trade war with China is probably going to cost you some money.

The newest round of tariffs on Chinese goods was announced on Aug. 1 and targets consumer goods, including everyday items like clothes, shoes, video games, computers and toys.

Trump wrongly claimed earlier this summer that the U.S. wouldn’t be paying for the fallout from the tariffs on China and said that China would be absorbing the costs.

But American companies are the ones who end up paying for tariffs imposed by Trump on products imported from China. The companies then typically add the cost of those tariffs onto the prices that customers pay.

Unless Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping can ease the tension between the two of them and call off the trade war, consumers will feel the burn after Trump’s tariffs take effect in September and December ― some of the busiest shopping months of the year.

A JPMorgan analysis estimates that this latest round of tariffs, on top of existing ones, will cost the average household in the U.S. $1,000 per year, CNBC reported Friday.

Shoes, in particular, will be impacted by the tariffs. A whopping 99% of shoes sold in the U.S. are made in China.

Apple customers should also be worried. Many of the tech giant’s most popular products are assembled in China, including its iPhones and iPads. Apple’s Mac Pro, its newest desktop model slated to hit the market this fall, is also being assembled in China.

While some American companies can apply to be excluded from the burden of Trump’s tariffs, the president very publicly denied Apple from such exceptions.

Tariffs Hurt the Heartland, a group of American trade groups fighting to end tariffs, said Friday that the latest round will jack up prices for consumers and called on Congress to intervene in Trump and Xi’s trade war.

“The administration is betting the health of our entire economy on a tariff strategy that is a proven loser,” the group said in a statement. “These added tariffs will ratchet up consumer prices, stall business investment, escalate uncertainty and cost American jobs.”

Here are some of the types of products imported from China whose prices could soon go up thanks to the trade war. (The full list, which contains hundreds of goods and materials, can be found here.)

Starting in September:

  • Clothes including suits, coats, jackets, pants, dresses, accessories and underwear
  • Umbrellas
  • Ovens and stoves
  • Beef and chicken
  • Ketchup
  • Cheese
  • Chocolate
  • Bed linen
  • Blankets
  • Curtains

Starting in December:

  • Cellphones, laptops, computer monitors, keyboards, headphones and speakers
  • Shoes including athletic shoes, boots and waterproof shoes
  • Christmas decorations
  • Handbags
  • Picture frames
  • Toys
  • Fishing rods and poles
  • Diapers
  • Combs
  • Umbrellas
  • Video games and consoles

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