All The Things That Are About To Be More Expensive In Canada Because Of Trump's New Tariffs
From handbags to groceries, Canadian wallets will feel the pain.
Over the weekend, Donald Trump announced a new round of tariffs on China. In an escalation of an ongoing trade war between the United States and China, Trump has seen fit to instill a 25% tariff on future Chinese imports.
While most affected imports include industrial goods that are used for mass production, over a quarter of the affected imports have to do with trade goods such as sporting equipment, electronics, and prepared foods.
This represents more than $300-million worth of imported products. China responded this morning by saying they'd fight the tariffs and imposed further penalties on American goods in China, according to the CBC.
The latest tariff list includes some 3,805 product categories and while Canada won't feel the pinch as soon as the States, Canadian consumers should expect this latest round of tariffs to affect us as early as this summer.
Previously, the U.S. imposed a 10% tariff on Chinese imports. Trump decided that a 25% tariff is now necessary, for some reason. In June, Chinese and American officials will meet up and discuss how they'll proceed for the rest of the year.
The Trump administration has so far strategically excluded the component parts of iPhone products for example, but other electronics such as laptops, MP3 players, DVD players, and video game consoles aren't excluded from the tariff list.
A tariff is a tax that's imposed on certain products. While many imported goods are subject to tariffs, they've historically been minimal and associated costs are often absorbed by the companies. Now though, consumers should expect that companies will turn the cost to them.
Trump ranted on Twitter that China would pay for the tariffs and that they would "hurt very badly" if they don't make a good deal. I struggle to remember if Trump has ever negotiated a "good deal", but hey.
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How will this affect Canadians? For one, electronics and sporting goods will be more expensive. But where we'll feel it the most is at the grocery store.
Everything from seafood to blueberries will potentially be more expensive.
Though Canada hasn't imposed any tariffs of its own on China, many products that come via the U.S. border will have Trump's 25% tariff already on them. Couple that with our high Canadian sales tax and we've got a match made in hell.
Here's a brief rundown of what will be more expensive:
- Vegetables: imported onion, garlic, cabbage, broccoli, cucumbers, beans, lentils, mushrooms, tomatoes, peppers, and more.
- Meat and seafood: imported pork, venison, rabbit, live fish (including trout, salmon, tuna, halibut, whitefish, etc), prawns, shrimp, oysters, lobsters, prepared canned seafood, and more.
- Fruits and nuts: imported coconuts, mangoes, guavas, bananas, pineapples, peaches, oranges, and more.
- Imported canned and processed foods such as pasta and condiments.
- Rice wine, juice mixes, mineral water, malted beer and wine.
- Cat and dog food, animal feed.
To consult the complete list of affected products, click here.
Let's hope that agreements in June between China and the U.S. go well because Canadians don't deserve to pay more for the mistakes of the American government.
Trump has just imposed a 25% tariff on Chinese imports. This means that Canadians will be charged more for everyday products like electronics and groceries. Trade talks between the U.S. and China will continue in June.