Companies are feeling pressure as they prepare for Trump to implement tariffs on Canada, Mexico and China, the New York Times reported Monday.
“Company executives and foreign officials are scrambling to avert the consequences of another tight deadline from Mr. Trump, who has threatened to put stiff tariffs on goods coming in from China, Canada and Mexico starting just after midnight Tuesday,” write Ana Swanson, Danielle Kaye, Jack Ewing and Rebecca F. Elliott.
“I’m basically in Hail Mary mode,” Logan Vanghele told the Times. He is the head of a small company that sells products for aquariums that are made in China. Last week, he begged for his shipment to be unloaded at its Friday stop in Virginia. “While it is possible that Mr. Trump’s new tariffs will include an exemption for goods that are already on the water, there is no guarantee,” the Times reported. Vanghele is looking at potentially paying about $25,000 in tariffs.
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Trump has threatened a 25 percent tariff on Canada and Mexico as well as a 10 percent tariff on China. He also implemented a 10 percent tariff on China earlier.
“There are going to be tariffs on Tuesday on Mexico and Canada,” Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick said in an interview on Fox News over the weekend. “Exactly what they are, we’re going to leave that for the president and his team to negotiate.”
“Canada and Mexico are both deeply dependent on exports to the United States, and Mr. Trump’s threats have whipped their governments into action,” the Times reported. “Delegations of officials have made trips to Washington in recent weeks, including to meet with Mr. Lutnick.”
“Although tariffs do not go into force until mid-March, spot commodity prices have already risen about 20 percent,” Timothy Fiore of the Institute for Supply Management told the Washington Post.
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Experts predict the automotive industry will be hit the hardest. “Our American automakers, who invested billions in the U.S. to meet these requirements, should not have their competitiveness undermined by tariffs that will raise the cost of building vehicles in the United States and stymie investment in the American work force,” Matt Blunt, the president of the American Automotive Policy Council, told the Times.
“You don’t have to be an expert in autos to see how detrimental this would be,” said John Helveston, an assistant professor at George Washington University.
Still, some people are waiting to see what happens, like Ron Baumgarten, who was a trade official in Trump’s first term. “If the signals we are seeing are correct, there could be a further postponement, or potentially a reduction from the proposed level of 25 percent. As is usual with President Trump, we will be kept guessing until the last minute,” he told the Post.