US footwear industry voices concern over new tariffs from Trump administration

President Trump signed executive orders on Saturday to impose broad tariffs on products, including footwear, from the nation’s three largest trading partners, Canada, Mexico and China
All goods imported from Canada and Mexico will be subject to a 25% tariff, except for Canadian energy products, which will be subject to a 10% tariff. Chinese goods will be subject to a 10% tariff. These levies were implemented under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) and will take effect on the 4th of February.
Although the Trump administration argues that the changes will boost domestic production, there are likely to be far-reaching negative consequences for the US consumer.
According to Matt Priest, CEO and President of the Footwear Distributors and Retailers of America (FDRA) association, “over the past few years, hardworking Americans have faced high inflation and high costs across the board” and “many families continue to struggle to pay for essential items they have to buy as a necessity — food, groceries, clothing, and shoes”.
“Tariffs drive up prices for consumers, and quite simply, that means higher prices on necessities like shoes. We urge President Trump and his economic team to resolve this issue as quickly as possible and avoid imposing new tariffs that will immediately hurt American families”, concluded Priest.
The American Apparel & Footwear Association has also expressed concern over the full tariffs placed on goods from Mexico, Canada and China, the US’s three largest trading partners.
“Widespread tariff actions on Mexico, Canada, and China announced this evening will inject massive costs into our inflation-weary economy while exposing us to a damaging tit-for-tat tariff war that will harm key export markets that U.S. farmers and manufacturers need. We should be forging deeper collaboration with our free trade agreement partners, not taking actions that call into question the very foundation of those partnerships”, said Steve Lamar, AAFA president and CEO.
In response, both Canada and Mexico said they were preparing similar tariffs on US goods. Canada’s President Justin Trudeau has already said the country will respond with 25% tariffs on 155 billion US dollars’ worth of American goods, including clothing and shoes. The Chinese government said it would take “corresponding countermeasures to resolutely safeguard our own rights and interests” and take the case against the US to the World Trade Organisation (WTO).
Update
From the 3rd February, Donald Trump decided to suspend for one month the imposition of tariffs on goods from Mexico and Canada, as the two countries acted to appease his concerns about border security and drug trafficking. China, on the other hand, said it would impose a 15% tariff on coal and liquefied natural gas products and a 10% tariff on crude oil, agricultural machinery and large-engine cars imported from the US from next Monday.
Image Credits: Paul Weaver on Unsplash