Posted on 05/16/2025 9:00:33 AM PDT by ChicagoConservative27
Import prices ticked up slightly in April, driven by higher costs for nonfuel goods even as fuel prices continued to slide, according to data released Friday by the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
The Import Price Index rose 0.1 percent in April, following a 0.4 percent decline in March. Over the past year, import prices were up just 0.1 percent. But excluding fuel, prices for imported goods rose 0.4 percent in April and were up 1.2 percent from a year earlier, suggesting continued resilience in U.S. demand for foreign goods despite the implementation of new tariffs in early April.
The Trump administration’s 10 percent universal tariff and additional targeted duties on over 60 countries went into effect on April 2. The modest rise in import prices, particularly outside the fuel category, suggests that the duties have not significantly deterred U.S. purchases of foreign-made goods.
This suggests fears that tariffs could lead to shortages are likely misplaced.
(Excerpt) Read more at breitbart.com ...
Unexpected, as usual.
It’s not an overnight change. I’d be surprised if it doesn’t happen without a change in policy. We’ll see i guess.
I have a good friend who runs a customs brokerage firm, he went to the largest annual conference of trade brokers that coincidentally happened when this ongoing trade conflict with China kind of blew up. He came back with a lot of info from that and forwarded much of the info he received to my email inbox.
His business temporarily went into some turmoil as this developed and the worldwide supply chain was threatened by uncertainty. But he told me not to worry because China was far more dependent on us than we were on them. This is despite China currently still being the world’s largest nation producing goods for trade. The US is the largest consumer nation, and we have currently many choices as to where we can spend our money or have components produced and assembled. Every prediction my friend made about this situation has come to pass.
He said despite the relentless negative news coverage that President Trump and those working under him are doing an excellent job of correcting abuses that everyone knows have been taking place. The slanted coverage points out real problems, but the impression it leaves is completely out of sync with reality. President Trump is working hard to clean up a mess that has developed over decades. There are going to be some challenges, but it absolutely needs to be done along with so many other issues that he is trying to take care of with a lot of success. He has still only been back in office since January 20th, less than 4 ago. He hit the floor running and has kept it up.
Everyone knows how badly we have been abused and ripped off.
It's so bad that they treat us with contempt and disrespect.
Our foreign competitors have been wondering for decades id America will ever wise up and frankly, they are shocked that we are finally waking up. They don't like it but they understand.
As far as prices go - there will be some transitory price increases, mostly on expensive to produce luxury goods but overall prices won't go up that much.
Why? Because the margins on most imports, especially the one from China, are pretty fat and after decades of taking it in the shorts from Chinese competition, the remaining American producers who have not been put out of business have been forced to become very efficient.
For decades, Chinese trash imports have put a lid on prices that US companies can charge for their products.
President Trump has flipped the script with his import policies and now our new generation of lean and mean US producers are putting a lid on how much of the tariff fees importers can pass on to the American consumer.
Sure, American companies may take the opportunity to increase their margins a bit to take pressure off and to give them some breathing room to reinvest but overall, price hikes are going to be a tough sell.
I'm frankly watching this unfold with a lot of glee - I've seen too many friends and colleagues get screwed and it's nice to see things flip .
The biggest winners of the Trump trade polices are going to be the perfectly good and highly efficient American producers who have seen their operations reduced to non reinvestment grade business due to predatory and often state sponsored foreign competition
I'm a huge proponent of free trade but we have not seen true, level playing field free trade play out since the 1970s.
What we have seen is the intentional, willful managed decline of the US manufacturing and technology sectors by a bunch of dirt bag politicians who have gotten rich by making America poor
Thanks for sharing
P
My Uncle and Aunt started a starter and alternator rebuilding business about 60 years ago while he was still working as a Police Officer. They did pretty well for decades, but this was one of the types of labor-intensive businesses that the Chinese took over. The rebuilt products that they turned out were crap by comparison, but they were cheaper and that is what people were looking for. My Aunt and Uncle started losing lots of money and eventually had to close their doors and lay-off all of their workers including their son who everyone assumed would take over the business.
There are so many other examples, but this is the type of business that may be able to compete again in the coming years.
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