• This is a political forum that is non-biased/non-partisan and treats every person's position on topics equally. This debate forum is not aligned to any political party. In today's politics, many ideas are split between and even within all the political parties. Often we find ourselves agreeing on one platform but some topics break our mold. We are here to discuss them in a civil political debate. If this is your first visit to our political forums, be sure to check out the RULES. Registering for debate politics is necessary before posting. Register today to participate - it's free!

The costs of Trump's tariffs are starting to add up for Americans. Here's how

Allan

Allan

DP Veteran
Joined
Sep 30, 2019
Messages
53,703
Reaction score
81,096
Gender
Male
Political Leaning
Liberal
Bad news for Americans, good news for the rest of the world.

Little by little, the costs of U.S. President Donald Trump's tariffs are starting to show for American businesses and consumers.

News of the tariff impact is mounting, from the Detroit Three automakers announcing they'll face extra costs this year totalling into the billions, to the stainless steel cookware manufacturer in Tennessee hit with a $75,000 US tariff bill on one shipment, right down to the coffee shops considering boosting the price of a cup because of tariffs on Brazil.
Click to expand...

Until recently, companies have somewhat shielded U.S. consumers from the full effects of the tariffs, either by rushing supplies into the country ahead of Trump's deadlines or absorbing the levies as a cost of doing business.

But with tariffs on imports from roughly 100 U.S. trading partners due to rise this week from their current baseline of 10 per cent, tariff-related costs are headed nowhere but up.
Click to expand...

The details...

 
  • Like
Reactions: jpn
America's version of an FAFO. They needed to get this out of their system.

It's like the college freshman who just wants to try out and finally see what it feels like to drink so much you pass out. The killer hangover the next day will be a lesson they will remember.
 
Thinking of your next good steak, or even a nice home made burger? US national beef herd is at the lowest level since the 1970's due to a mix of climate change and financial decisions by farmers in uncertain times. So we get all that extra beef we need from
- Canada (now + 35%)
- Mexico (now + ?%) but they have a major disease issue affecting US imports anyway
- Brazil (now + 50%)
- Australia (now + 10%)
- New Zealand (now + 15%)
- and I think a few other minor suppliers who all have tariff increases as well.

Instead of US farmers holding cattle to increase their herd sizes, they are killing all that they reasonably can to cash in on the beef price windfall. Who knows how long any tariffs will last among all the tacoing, so investing in the long term is far more riskier than banking the profits available now. There is actually a global beef shortage, so there is not going to be a lot of pressure on the countries above to do much with their prices. That means the US consumer gets the direct benefit of paying Trumps new taxes. And most of those new taxes are going to start hitting pretty soon.
 
Ishm said:
US national beef herd is at the lowest level since the 1970's due to a mix of climate change and financial decisions by farmers in uncertain times.
Click to expand...
Trump recently bragged that America was going to be able to export beef to Australia.

I don't think so based on your post.

The other issue is that Australian beef is prized around the world. In Asia and Europe restaurants make a big deal of it when it's on their menu.

Why would Australians switch to American beef when they already have the best? (Japan would disagree with me and probably have their herd of pampered Kobe cattle stomp me to mush).
 
Allan said:
Trump recently bragged that America was going to be able to export beef to Australia.

I don't think so based on your post.

The other issue is that Australian beef is prized around the world. In Asia and Europe restaurants make a big deal of it when it's on their menu.

Why would Australians switch to American beef when they already have the best? (Japan would disagree with me and probably have their herd of pampered Kobe cattle stomp me to mush).
Click to expand...
I read an article in the Australian media shortly after Trump announced his great win in beef exports to Aus. They were more or less laughing about how comparatively expensive US beef would be, and how few Australians would actually want to eat it. Like so many things with Trump, he made a lot of noise about his own greatness in achieving what again is next to nothing. I think a lot of Americans don't understand how so many other countries look at all the crap that goes into so much American food (to make it cheap) in absolute horror. When I buy meat here in NZ it is always local, grass fed, free range etc. No growth hormones added, no cramped feedlots, no antibiotics used to speed up growth etc etc. Having lived here for a while, even I wouldn't now buy US beef if it ever got onto the shelves here.
 
Mycroft said:
Instead of complaining, those businesses need to get with it and create new supply chains. If they didn't start doing that months ago, they are stupid.
Click to expand...
Oh, sure, make big investments based on tariffs only one man on Earth thinks are a good idea, and who changes them every other day.

Great idea.
 
Mycroft said:
Why the surprise? We knew this would happen.

Instead of complaining, those businesses need to get with it and create new supply chains. If they didn't start doing that months ago, they are stupid.

I don't know...maybe people didn't think Trump was serious. Now they know he is.
Click to expand...
You say that like you dont know that there are always cheaper markets. The main economic critique to socialism you people keep repeating fits ever-so-perfectly now
Markets will always take the easy path. Tariffs do not make you the easy path.
 
  • Like
Reactions: jpn
jpn said:
Oh, sure, make big investments based on tariffs only one man on Earth thinks are a good idea, and who changes them every other day.

Great idea.
Click to expand...
shrug...

It's either that or go broke for four years.
 
Dassier said:
You say that like you dont know that there are always cheaper markets. The main economic critique to socialism you people keep repeating fits ever-so-perfectly now
Markets will always take the easy path. Tariffs do not make you the easy path.
Click to expand...
If companies want to sell to American consumers...and believe me, they ALL want to sell to American consumers...they'll have to figure out a way to stay in business.
 
Mycroft said:
Buy American aluminum.
Click to expand...
Why? It'll necessarily be more expensive, since places like Canada, with its abundant hydroelectric power, can export it to us at lower prices than we can produce it here. Why should Americans pay more in order to artificially maintain an industry that can't otherwise compete? I remember when conservatives used to think government should get out of the way of the free market. Oh, and get out of here with "national security" arguments. Canada is the best friend the US could possibly have--despite Trump's idiotic insults.

Also, who is going to make the massive investment in mining and refining bauxite and smelting aluminum in America, knowing that we will drop the stupid Trump tariffs the moment he's out of office? Trump and MAGA can try to beat Econ 101 into submission, but the fact is, free trade is just better and every sane person knows it. This temporary madness will end when Trump goes away. Investors know that.

Also, why should we deplete our resources first? Minerals such as bauxite aren't infinite, and only get more valuable over time. Let Canada use up their strategic resources first.
 
Mycroft said:
shrug...

It's either that or go broke for four years.
Click to expand...
shrug...

Either we raise tax revenue by forcing through a devastating and dislocating manufacturing makeover based on bad economics, or we simply repeal the massive tax cut on millionaires and billionaires.
 
Mycroft said:
If companies want to sell to American consumers...and believe me, they ALL want to sell to American consumers...they'll have to figure out a way to stay in business.
Click to expand...
Canada wants to sell their aluminum to us. Let's let them.
 
Mycroft said:
Why the surprise? We knew this would happen.

Instead of complaining, those businesses need to get with it and create new supply chains. If they didn't start doing that months ago, they are stupid.

I don't know...maybe people didn't think Trump was serious. Now they know he is.
Click to expand...
That's right. Folger's needs to buy its coffee from Alabama.

You do realize costs go up either way? Why the surprise, I ask myself. :oops:
 
Ishm said:
Thinking of your next good steak, or even a nice home made burger? US national beef herd is at the lowest level since the 1970's due to a mix of climate change and financial decisions by farmers in uncertain times. So we get all that extra beef we need from
- Canada (now + 35%)
- Mexico (now + ?%) but they have a major disease issue affecting US imports anyway
- Brazil (now + 50%)
- Australia (now + 10%)
- New Zealand (now + 15%)
- and I think a few other minor suppliers who all have tariff increases as well.

Instead of US farmers holding cattle to increase their herd sizes, they are killing all that they reasonably can to cash in on the beef price windfall. Who knows how long any tariffs will last among all the tacoing, so investing in the long term is far more riskier than banking the profits available now. There is actually a global beef shortage, so there is not going to be a lot of pressure on the countries above to do much with their prices. That means the US consumer gets the direct benefit of paying Trumps new taxes. And most of those new taxes are going to start hitting pretty soon.
Click to expand...

Thank God the cow is sacred in India, or who knows what we'd be paying to source from them?
 
Mycroft said:
Why the surprise? We knew this would happen.

Instead of complaining, those businesses need to get with it and create new supply chains. If they didn't start doing that months ago, they are stupid.
Click to expand...
Mycroft said:
I don't know...maybe people didn't think Trump was serious. Now they know he is.
Click to expand...

Yeah, seriously screwing us over.

MAGA doesn't even hide it anymore, as exhibited in this post.

And 'no', Trump never told us he was "serious" about raising our prices.
 
Mycroft said:
shrug...

It's either that or go broke for four years.
Click to expand...

Mycroft said:
If companies want to sell to American consumers...and believe me, they ALL want to sell to American consumers...they'll have to figure out a way to stay in business.
Click to expand...

This is exactly why Trump's job approval is in gutter, and why the American voter is going to be tossing MAGA in the same gutter - starting with the Midterms.
 
Mycroft said:
If companies want to sell to American consumers...and believe me, they ALL want to sell to American consumers...they'll have to figure out a way to stay in business.
Click to expand...
Oh buddy, let me tell you, if the american market becomes non-viable, NO ONE will want to sell to americans. You're not the richest, nor the largest of consumers.
 
(I can't see in the rules that linking to a thread on another forum is verboten) ... Anyhoo, here's an actual example of the utter confusion that Trump's tariffs are causing the poor hapless citizen who just wants to buy something not in stock in the US:

Tubes & Tariffs - OUCH!

So my Manley Stingray, which is my monitoring power amp, has 8 - EL84 tubes and 2 of them finally went south. They were waaaaay too low trying to bias them and they'd been replaced only once since 2005 so I figured I would spring for 2 matched quartets of The Tube Amp Doctor's EL-84-STRs as I'd...
vi-control.net vi-control.net
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom