In yesterday's Washington Post there was a story looking at how companies are preparing to respond to Trump’s tariff proposal if he is elected next week. Some companies are placing "unusually large orders" to stock up before any potential tariffs take effect, while others are trying to shift suppliers outside of China. A few people interviewed expressed doubt that Trump would follow through on his tariff pledge. However, the article makes one thing very clear: the main costs will fall on American buyers.
“Producers of a range of items, including clothing, footwear, baby products, auto parts and hardware, say they will pass along the cost of the tariffs to their American customers.
The planned price increases next year would come as consumers are beginning to enjoy relief from the highest inflation in four decades and directly contradict Trump's repeated assurances that foreigners will pay the tariff tab.
"We're set to raise prices," Timothy Boyle, chief executive of Columbia Sportswear, said in an interview. "We're buying stuff today for delivery next fall. So we're just going to deal with it and we'll just raise the prices. ... It's going to be very, very difficult to keep products affordable for Americans."