It might be more correct to say we don't know if price increases are due solely to the tariffs. I agree that there are other factors that play into pricing, but it's certainly a given that business will pass on cost increases when they can. And there is no reason for them to eat the cost of a tariff. It will be passed on to consumers.
It is doubtful an increase in tariffs would be passed along to consumers in its entirety. There is still competition which must be dealt with so far more likely the importer, the wholesaler, the retailer and possibly the customer would share in the increase.
But since competition is faced with paying the same tariff then there is no incentive for an importer to eat even a part of the cost.
There are no tariffs on goods produced in America and since the tax reform many foreign countries are setting up production here to take advantage of the tax break and to avoid tariffs. One of them is Samsung another is LG.
But only if they can produce their goods less expensively hear than in Korea. Both Samsung and LG are talking about manufacturing their high-end products here. Products that already sell for a premium and which only form a small part of their overall product line. The bulk of their product will still be manufactured overseas.
Here is the bottom line. It all comes down to dollars and cents.
The 40% reduction in the corporate tax rate allows domestic mfg be competitive with the foreign manufacturers. The price of an item in the marketplace is determined by it’s cost to build and that cost includes income taxes to be paid.
You seem to believe wholesale suppliers won’t absorb any of the increases brought by higher tariffs because they sell to a captive audience of retailers. That is not so. As a former businessman in retail I had several avenues I could pursue to by my products. Not every wholesaler is run the same or has the same expenses and it is the wholesalers overhead which determines his markup to detail sellers.
As for whether domestic mfg can meet foreign mfg on cost to build, that is the idea of the tariffs. Foreign gov often subsidize their manufacturers in order to make their products more attractive in foreign markets. This is called dumping and China has a long history of doing this. Tariffs will level the playing field in this area.
DJ TRUMP had the best so?union though when he said drop all tariffs.