Since Donald Trump’s inauguration on January 12th, he has passed well over 50 policies on imported goods from Mexico, Canada, the European Union, and China. Most of which include tariffs. Tariffs are a fancy way of saying taxes on imported and exported goods. They add an extra cost on top of the set cost that is given to the country that set the tariff. Many believe these are very uneducated decisions considering the country’s economic state right now.
One of the most prominent tariffs is his 25% tax on imported steel and aluminum compared to the previous 10%. This will raise the price of a steel item from $1,000 to $1,250. As for cars, this could raise the price of a car up to $1500.
Another mentioned tariff is one on other countries’ taxed goods. For example, if China taxed a certain sweater, then the United States would match that tax. It gives the reciprocating country what they imposed. This is the president’s way of establishing authority over other countries. It says that the United States is superior and no one will change that.
For the United States, this means that inflation will likely get worse according to economists. Trump is doing this to encourage the United States to function on their own and maintain all of the things the country needs. He is trying to establish economic security internally. For example, our main imports are from China with almost an astonishing 17% of our entire economic imports. If China suffered an economic breakdown, the United States would lose almost 600 billion dollars in just one year from China alone. With six different countries importing at least 150 billion dollars in goods, it is too much risk in his eyes.
