These popular brands say Trump's tariffs are forcing them to raise prices
- President Donald Trump hit China with tariffs on $200 billion worth of Chinese goods on Monday. This is the first time that consumer goods have been directly impacted by Trump's tariffs. China retaliated by announcing tariffs on $60 billion worth of US goods sent to China.
- Trump imposed tariffs on manufacturing goods earlier in the year. He said import taxes are meant to help US manufacturers by making foreign products more expensive.
- Several companies have either already raised their prices or say they plan to as a result of the tariffs.
President Donald Trump's tariffs are leading to higher import costs for US-based companies, and it's American consumers who are likely to bear the burden.
On Monday, Trump hit China with a 10% tax on $200 billion worth of Chinese goods. This was the first time consumer goods have been directly impacted by Trump's tariffs
While the White House has pointed to national security issues as justification for the tariffs, there's also a practical economic component to Trump's duties. The tariffs on foreign imports are designed to make foreign goods more expensive and therefore US manufacturers and products more appealing.
The latest tariffs, along with previous rounds on $50 billion of Chinese goods and metal imports, will mean that more than half of all Chinese goods coming into the US will be subject to the import taxes.
"The new tariffs are bad news for the retail sector, especially as the latest round seems to extend the tax to a vast array of consumer goods. Many retailers will now be faced with a difficult choice of whether to pass the cost increases across to consumers or to take a hit on their margins," Neil Saunders, managing director of GlobalData Retail, wrote in a comment emailed to Business Insider.
"Fortunately, the consumer is currently in a position to cope with some mild rises in retail prices. However, a rise in prices across the board will likely result in a decline in retail volumes over the longer term, which will be unhelpful to the sector," he added.
Since Trump's tariffs have been in place, several US companies including Coca-Cola and Winnebago have said they have been forced to raise prices on the consumer's side. Others are threatening to follow suit.
Here's a list of some of the best-known brands that have spoken out about Trump's tariffs and either raised prices already or say they plan to:
SEE ALSO: See all the products that will cost you more because of Trump's trade war
Walmart
Walmart sent a letter to the Trump administration, urging it to reconsider the latest tariffs on $200 billion worth of Chinese goods. The retailer warned that tariffs will likely result in it having to raise prices for the consumer.
"As the largest retailer in the United States and a major buyer of U.S. manufactured goods, we are very concerned about the impacts these tariffs would have on our business, our customers, our suppliers and the U.S. economy as a whole," Walmart wrote, according to Reuters.
The tariffs were approved on Monday.
Gap
In an interview with Bloomberg in September, Gap Inc CEO Art Peck explained that the apparel giant is keeping a close eye on the new tariffs on consumer goods. While the retailer has been making moves to move its manufacturing away from China, around 22% of its clothing is still made there.
"We are watching it very, very carefully, as you can imagine," Peck told Bloomberg. "In some cases, we'll have no choice but to pass the impact of these tariffs through to our consumers."
Coca-Cola
Coca-Cola said on July 27 it would be raising the price of its sodas in the middle of the year.
"There is some broad-based push on input costs that have kind of come in and affected ours and many other industries as well," CEO James Quincey told The Wall Street Journal.
Quincey cited the steel and aluminum tariffs announced by Trump earlier this year as one of the causes of rising costs but did not specify how high the price increase would be.
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