:agree:

Not everyone can AFFORD the higher price.

Tariffs is going to cost you more anyway.
 

I understand your concern, but if we focus more on buying our own products unemployment will drop across the board and wages will rise. Today a person buys a product manufactured from a foreign country, that means one less American employee and that also means one less shopper to purchase whatever your employer is selling. Buying American products is a win, win, situation for everyone. Tariffs will end up with prices going up anyway and if you remember the last time we went down this road China retaliated and started importing soybeans from South America hurting U.S. farmers.

Once again. Send me money so I can afford to buy the higher-priced American-made version of whatever I get for less from a Chinese-made product of similar quality.

I'm glad there are American companies that make sneakers for Americans, like New Balance. However - none of their styles are suitable for my feet. So even if I could get them for less than I pay for my Merrel's, I won't buy them. The Merrels are made in China. They're $85. They fit me perfectly, comfortably, don't weigh a ton, look decent with almost everything I wear, and have a wide enough toe box that I don't suffer after walking around for an hour. Find me the same made in America for $85 or less, and I will buy it.

Til then, I guess someone in the USA will have to flip burgers instead of making sneakers. Or maybe get some training and learn to do something more rewarding than making sneakers for a living.

Might be painful for some in the short run, but I agree with Post #6. Much ado about not much. Whatever tariffs are imposed, will be targeted. The sky will NOT fall.

Looking long-term, this only Strengthens America. America won WW 2 for the allies, much as it pains our European friends to admit it. But we didn't win it on the battlefield. Many Axis forces were better-trained, better led, and (at the beginning of the war, anyway) better equipped. But we were in the war economically for about two years before we were ever in it militarily. I forget the lend-lease numbers but translated into today's dollars, they were astronomical. Not just military hardware but things like food, medical supplies, etc. went to the allies in vast amounts long before Dec. 8, 1941. When we did enter the battle we did so with an overwhelming economic powerhouse back home churning out guns, aircraft, tanks, ships, etc. at an incredible rate. I forget the liberty ship numbers but we were cranking them out faster than we could fill them. as far as military equipment went, my numbers might be a bit off but they do indicate the big picture. Aircraft carriers: at the beginning of the war we had very few if any. Japan had four major ones. At the end of the was the carrier war was Japan 0. America over 100! The same for the european theater: The Sherman tanks were pretty easy targets for the Axis, particularly towards the end of things with their Tiger and King Tiger tanks. But our numbers were overwhelming. No matter how fast the axis destroyed them, they just kept coming in ever-increasing numbers.

The point is this. Could we, with so much of our manufacturing done overseas (and a lot by potential enemies) rise to the occasion if necessary, as we did in WW 2? I doubt it.

Call me skeptical, but I can think of so many reasons why the U.S. cannot compete for product prices with China, I don't know where to start. And, most Americans only care about the getting the lowest price. Some of the reasons U.S. prices are higher are: unions, minimum wages, safety rules, environmental rules, standard of living expectations, work benefits, employment taxes, employer health care mandates, lawsuits, etc., etc., etc.

How about this?
Instead of imposing tarriffs on Chinese goods, maybe we should just prohibit certain Chinese made products from entering and being sold in this country. It might slow down Wal-Mart just a bit, but do we really care?

I'm not suggesting you have to buy something that does not meet your needs, what I'm simply saying is if there is a product of equal quality on the shelf and it is a bit more expensive because it is made in America in the long run you will benefit more by spending the extra money. The more people that are employed in the U.S. the better we all are. Every time an American employee is added, that is a new shopper, it's sort of a chain reaction.

Yes, you are correct that is why prices are higher, but the alternative is something I don't think you would want for yourself. Low wages, no safety protection in the workplace and giving companies the freedom to be as negligent as they please without the fear of lawsuits.
This country has a history of companies putting their employees in dangers to increase their profits.

Wal-mart is where millions of people in this country can AFFORD to buy things that they need for their homes and their families. Like it or not, this country can't afford to buy American. If we could, then Wal-mart wouldn't have done so well decades after they first set up shop here.

Why would I pay $3 for a can of beans, when I can get the exact same can of beans, same size and flavor, for $1.80? Why should I pay $3.54 for a half-gallon of 2% milk at Publix when I can get a half-gallon of 2% milk for $2.45 at Wal-mart? Sure, it's just a few cents. But when you add up every item that you're saving a few cents on, then multiply it by 52 weeks you're buying it every year, you're looking at a couple thousand bucks worth of groceries that you can afford to buy.

Take those couple thousand bucks away, and you're looking at people who live on a budget, having to stop buying ANY fresh foods, buying $1.25 chicken pot pies instead of wholesome foods, using powdered milk instead of real dairy, and eating a LOT of rice and beans. Those families who are already unfortunate to be in that situation, would now have to decide which of their family members will go without lunch.

Inflation happens, no matter who is running the country. People have to pay more, but their opportunities to earn more are not as good as they were in the 1960's and 1970's. The concept of the "company man" who spends most of his adult life in one place of employment, whose employer looks after their employees, has gone the way of the dodo.

Entire party venues have gone out of business because they no longer get the annual picnics that corporations once booked them for. The "culture" of employment has changed. The lifestyles of families relying on one income have changed, and those relying on two incomes has changed. If you're wealthy, NONE of this applies to you, and you have no experience of anything the rest of the country has to endure.

But for those of us who aren't "struggling" - but are trying to maintain a "comfortable" lifestyle while not being wealthy - are having trouble doing so. For us, Wal-mart is a godsend. Walmart is the REASON why I can afford to get good beef at Publix. Walmart is the REASON we can spend money at local restaurants every so often. By saving money on groceries and other essentials, we have more available to spend somewhere else.

If you take that away, you'll see a lot of people like me, no longer spending our money outside the grocery store. We live in a global economy, whether we want to or not. And so some of us choose to make the best of what we have.

No, I won't. Because it means I'll have less to spend on something else.

The only way U.S. consumers will have to pay more because of a tariff, is if they buy Chinese made products.

Buying from China
 

Some people do not seem to understand that a 20% tariff on imports from China means a
higher price for the consumer on the items coming from that country i.e. a TV set that costs at Walmart $500 now will cost $600 after the tariffs. In short, it will harm both consumers as well as the the Chinese manufacturers that will experience a lesser volume of sales

1. That may be the only product available

2. If it isn’t the only product available then US consumers were buying it due to its lower price

3. When tariffs are imposed US consumers will either pay more or do without

That would definitely be the demise of Chinese outlet stores here, like the $1.25 tree stores, and a number of others. To me the bottom line question is, will the American public actually accept the "pain" along with the aspect of gaining a strong, self-sufficient, country again. This is so incredibly complicated and all factors are interwoven. Illegals for instance, mass deportation and strong border guarding will reduce the number of workers available to butcher and cut meat, to clean hotel rooms, to put on new roofs and mow lawns. That will open jobs for millions on our welfare roles. But.... will Americans in general be willing to pay more for those hotel rooms just because the hotel maids will once again be mainly English speaking (like when I was a kid, on vacation with my parents, we talked with the person cleaning our room, would compliment them, etc.) ? It will come with a price, it will be interesting to see how many of us are willing to put our money where our mouth, the mouth always complaining about the loss of jobs, poor quality of so many goods (how many of your parents had a refrigerator that was still running just fine after 22 years ? Mine sure did ! ), and complain about the real cost of having "cheap labor" which often turns out not to be so cheap after all when things like medical, crowded schools, crowded hospitals, welfare, etc. is all added up ? A lot to think about, a lot to tackle !

So where do we draw the line? The more cheap Chinese products we buy the more manufacturing plants in the U.S. either close or move their operations overseas for cheaper labor. Where are U.S. citizens going to get the money to buy cheap Chinese made products if there are no jobs? Manufacturing was a big part in the creation of the middle class in this country.
A few years back I visited a friend in Connecticut. The town he lived in was a very prosperous place to live and work. Not any longer! He drove me around the town pointing out numerous shuttered manufacturing facilities that closed due to cheap Chinese products. All there is now are low paying service industry jobs. Gotta have those cheap products!

Hey, impose policies that drive production back home even if it results in higher prices. No problem, the end result might be worth the pain. But don’t pretend (or lie) that there won’t be pain.

Much of this will depend on what the government does with the tariff money. Will they pay down the debt or waste it?

Will need to see the effect on employment numbers. I am always amaze at how much of the economy is based on marketing and distributing foreign made products. Many of these consumer products are non-essential.

I doubt there is any color to the money from tariffs. Regardless, we are probably talking about a few hundreds of billions of dollars, potentially. This is relatively small potatoes when we will be paying over 1 trillion to service the debt.

:boom::boom:
You hit the nail on the head!!! Exactly

The effect of upcoming tariffs....
 

Can’t compete with China labor average 16K year or 5.25 Mexico hourly wage. They free trade agreements was fair was it.

I've ordered hundreds of times from Temu with few if any disappointments. But if a product isn't as described, I have only to request a refund. I get one within seconds without having to return the product--provided, that is, that the product is inexpensively priced. Perhaps Amazon needs a bit of direct competition.

As long as they're legal, sure.

The plan is to use tariffs to offset tax hikes to the American people, thereby replacing taxable income to the U.S. Treasury with tariff revenue. I haven't read an analysis of this strategy but it would certainly be unique.

What?

Prescription drugs are one of them. It's outrageous that the U.S. relies on a foreign country for life-saving drugs. How stupid can you get?

Yup, that and no environmental controls allow them to make stuff much cheaper than we can. Even when the cost of transporting goods half way across the planet is added, still much cheaper. Tariffs will help even the pricing playing field, but will also contribute to inflation.

:bigbow::bigbow: Simple economics, Americans want cheap and will not pay for higher cost goods. There is a reason WalMart, Amazon, Dollar stores, Temu and others outside are huge, cheap goods for cheap price. Not saying it is good or bad, just a fact. Same will happen for groceries when the labor that produces them is eliminated prices will climb. Home prices will go up when laborers that do all the real work leave.

So paying more for goods is going to help the public offset tax hikes. Sounds more like a double tax. If the cost of getting goods onto store shelves go up the cost of those goods will go up. How is that good for the public.

Understanding that tariffs, a form of a tax, will absolutely increase the cost of those products as the importer has higher costs.. those costs will be passed to the consumer, while the tariff imposed is collected by the Federal treasury. So now the US gov't has more money, but the consumer has less. This is another example of a regressive tax as consumers get hit but those who are not consuming, the 1%ers who are saving and investing not buying with most of their income are not being taxed. So the tax burden is imposed on those who can least afford it and the benefit of not needing to consider a higher marginal rate from the rich benefits who??

Nicely put.

It benefits the people who don't care, because they can afford to pay more for everything and still have plenty left over for their kids to inherit.

Everyone else takes a dive, whether they understand how tariffs work or not.

Next couple of years will be interesting. Worst part is that we have not had a recession in a long time and are inevitable in business cycles. As usual the young un educated people are affected the most.

Suggest taking the time to find the product made in the US and when you find it you will need to fork up more money for that same product.

Thank you Villages Economists.

That is just proof the past policies really didn’t work and you are an example of why we shouldn’t continue to ship jobs out of the Country. Many don’t care until it is their job and finances. Just wait until AI takes hold, the number of unemployed Lawyers, Accountants, Investment Analyst, etc, will skyrocket. If your job doesn’t include some hands on activity with people (Nurses, Plumbers, Doctors, Electricians, etc.) plan on large pay reductions and finally the unemployment line.

US doesn’t manufacture most things we bring in from China.

In certain situations, I totally agree with this statement. People are looking out for their family, their money, when they shop with price in mind. If you learn to be careful with your money, you will be able to take care of yourself and your family.

And if I continue, someone is gonna get mad at me for being political.

Every American made car requires parts that are manufactured in other countries to finish their assembly. There is no such thing as a 100% US manufactured car anymore. We simply don’t gave the manufacturer plants here anymore and it takes 5-8 years to build plants and train personnel for them. We are in for a world of hurt as Elon stated “necessary hardships “ ahead.

Tariffs
 

I agree that we need to bring industry and manufacturing back to the States. Look at the political situation with China today. Militarly they are VERY aggressive and if things happen we will be out of luck. We can not have another country have the upper hands in our products. Look what Wal Mart did to every small business in the country. The coffee is brewing, wake up and smell it.