JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — From fresh fruits and vegetables to cars and electronics, those are goods that you could soon be paying more for.
Action News Jax is uncovering how potential tariffs on imported goods could impact the amount you spend on everyday items.
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This comes as President Donald Trump is looking to place a 25% tariff on Canada and Mexico by Sunday, Feb. 1.
“I think it’s honestly ridiculous,” Edwin Olivo, a Jacksonville resident, said. “You are putting a tariff that is only going to increase the prices on goods delivered into the country.”
Read: What are tariffs and how do they work?
“I think that we will be paying less,” consumer Nancy Wani said.
Experts said the proposed tariffs would have a significant and detrimental impact on the costs of a wide range of consumer products sold in the U.S., particularly on products where China is the major supplier.
And this is because the tariffs are paid first by American importers.
Read: Trump’s tariff threat worked on Colombia, but his plans for Canada and Mexico carry higher stakes
“If we are looking to put those 25% tariffs in place pretty quickly, there is not a whole lot of time for companies to react and mitigate how they would like to,” Jonathan Gold with the National Retail Federation said.
And the impact you may feel at home?
“I think it’s really going to depend upon the retailer or the manufacturer and how they are going to be able to mitigate the cost increases that they are seeing because of the tariffs,” Gold said.
Read: Fed hold rates steady, sees inflation as ‘elevated,’ as Powell declines comment on Trump
According to a study from the National Retail Federation released last November, across the board, it found that the tariffs would result in price increases.
They examined the low-end and high-end of the tariff proposals, including a 10%-20% across-the-board tariff increase on all products from all countries, and another 60%-100% on all imports from China.
Read: Ontario leader calls for snap election to fight Trump’s threatened tariffs
The study looked at 6 key retail categories: Apparel, footwear, home appliances, furniture, toys and travel goods.
“We found within those 6 categories alone that consumers would lose between $46- and $70 billion worth of spending power because the prices would rise in each of those categories,” Gold said.
Toy prices would face one of the highest increases, according to the NRF.
For example, a $50 tricycle would increase anywhere from $68 to $78, and a $25 board game would cost $34-$39
And while you may feel like you need to go out to stores like Costco and Best Buy to grab electronics, or speed up the car buying process, the NRF is encouraging consumers not to rush out and buy products.
“That causes other issues within the supply chain,” Gold said.
For consumers like Olivo, he said he is not in a hurry to buy anything, especially when it comes to making a big purchase.
“I check out to see if there are other options, what the market is like, and what am I looking for,” Olivo said.
It’s unclear when the tariffs could actually hit consumers because that will depend upon when they do take effect, which will likely be Feb.1.
Action News Jax’ Phil Amato takes a deeper look at the potential local impacts of upcoming tariffs. Watch below for how local businesses are preparing, and the expected effect on JaxPort.
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