President Trump's rates are aimed at countries that are large suppliers of a wide range of goods to the United States. For American families, the likely result is higher prices almost everywhere they turn around – in the aisles of supermarkets, car dealers, electronic stores and at the pump.
Mr. Trump signed executive orders on Saturday that imposed rates for the three largest trading partners in the country. Rates against Canada and China will take effect on Tuesday at 12:01 pm, while they have been delayed with a month on Mexican goods. All goods imported from Canada and Mexico are subject to a rate of 25 percent, except Canadian energy products, which is confronted with a rate of 10 percent, according to the executive orders. The orders also imposed a rate of 10 percent on Chinese goods.
Although Mr. Trump acknowledged on Sunday that his new rates “can cause some pain,” he has insisted that they will not significantly increase prices for Americans and that they will suffer abroad. But trade data and economic studies suggest that consumers in the United States will probably see higher prices for a wide range of products, from vegetables and meat to mobile phones and cars. Although some companies can choose to pass on the costs of the rate, many will probably increase the prices for their products.
“Because of the combination of these three countries, it will be difficult to enter a aisle of a supermarket and see no kind of inflationing effect,” said Jason Miller, a professor in supply chain management at Michigan State University.
This is what to know about which prices could rise:
What should shoppers expect in the aisles of the supermarkets?
Fresh products, a large part of which is imported from Mexico, is one of the first categories where shoppers notice an increase in prices. It could happen within a few weeks after the rates on Mexican goods – which have been delayed – will be in force. These items, including avocados, tomatoes and strawberries, have a short shelf life. Supermarkets lack significant inventory, which means that consumers will quickly find products that are subject to Mr Trump's rates.
The price increases are also ready to touch drink baths, especially beer and tequila. In 2023, almost three -quarters of the American agricultural import from Mexico consisted of vegetables, fruit, drinks and distilled spirits, according to the US Department of Agriculture.
The United States also import a series of agricultural products from Canada, including meat and grains. Mr. Trump's 25 percent rate at most imports of the Northern neighbor can increase the selling prices for beef, if supermarkets pass on the costs to the consumer. Axle -duct syrup can also become more expensive. Canada accounts for around 70 percent of global maple syrup production and in 2023 more than 60 percent of the maple export went to the United States, according to data from the Canadian government.
This added burden comes because many Americans have already experienced sticker shock in their supermarkets. Data from the labor department showed that in December the supermarket prices – which had been relatively flat at the end of 2023 and early 2024 – rose again, led by the price of eggs.
Can the car prices also rise?
Yes, the rates will be generally expected to increase the prices that American consumers pay for new cars. That is because car manufacturers dozens of billions of dollars on finished vehicles, as well as engines, transmissions and other components that are ship over the American borders with Canada and Mexico every week. Billions of dollars more are imported from parts manufacturers in China.
New cars and trucks are already selling at near-record prices. Mr. Trump's rates can add the challenges for consumers who want to buy a car.
General Motors, the largest American car maker, will probably feel the impact of the rates acute than other car manufacturers. GM plants in Canada and Mexico produced nearly 40 percent of all vehicles that the company made in North America last year.
But how the rates will influence car prices will probably be more varied compared to food, said Mr Miller of Michigan State University. Vehicles collected in states such as Michigan, Ohio, Kentucky and Indiana, tend to rely strongly on car components imported from Canada, he said, which is not the case all over the line.
“There is just much more complexity to understand the price increases that consumers could eventually see,” said Mr. Miller.
Which other products can be influenced?
American drivers, especially in the midwest, can see higher prices at the pump. Mr. Trump's rate on Canadian energy is not as steep as he initially indicated that it would be, and it is lower than rates for other Canadian goods. But the load nevertheless threatens to disturb the American oil and gas industry, which is highly dependent on Canadian oil. About 60 percent of the oil that comes American imports from Canada.
Analysts expect the extra costs to be borne by a combination of oil producers in Canada and Mexico, American refineries and American consumers. How the rates risen through the market will partly depend on how long they stay in place.
Consumer electronics – one of the best goods imported from China last year in the United States – can also become more expensive. From mobile phones and computers to video games, shoppers could see prices rising within a few months.
Another product that is likely to be influenced is wood, of which about 30 percent are imported from Canada. Rates on softwood wood can increase the costs of building houses, which runs the risk of deteriorating the affordability crisis of the home that already weighs on millions of American families. More than 70 percent of the input of two essential materials on which home builders trust – softwood wood and plaster, which is used for drywall – come from Canada and Mexico, according to the National Association of Home Builders.
“Rates for wood and other building materials increase the construction costs and discourage new development, and consumers ultimately pay for the rates in the form of higher house prices,” said Carl Harris, the chairman of the association, in a statement on Saturday on Saturday.
How fast prices can rise?
That depends on the product. Consumers could see a rapid increase in prices for non -durable goods, including groceries. But it may take longer for the prices to rise for sustainable goods, such as cars, thanks to the existing inventory, or if companies expect the rates to be temporary, Felix Tintelnot, university teacher Economy at Duke University.
How quickly companies are prepared and able to increase their prices can still be seen, said Peter Simon, a professor of economics at Northeastern University, Saturday. Although some price increases can form a legitimate response to the rising costs for companies, there is also the risk of opportunistic prices, which means that companies can use rates as an excuse to increase prices more than necessary, Mr Simon said.
What about the inflation of the whole line?
Analysts at Goldman Sachs have said that if Mr. Trump continues with rates across the board, this would increase both prices in the United States and a slow economic growth. Most economists expect that the new trade barriers can lead to a temporary eruption of higher inflation.
Inflation has been struck back to the purpose of 2 percent of the Federal Reserve after the central bank has aggressively increased interest in the last few years and had kept it at a high level. But the Fed remains alert to everything that could block the progress in the direction of that goal – including Mr Trump's rates.
