On Saturday, February 1, 2025, Donald Trump begins his presidency by implementing tariffs on Mexico, Canada, and China. These three countries are the United States’ biggest supplier countries. Tariffs are basically taxes implemented by the government of the country on the import of goods. Companies bringing products into the U.S. from Canada and Mexico will pay a 25 percent tariff while China will pay a 10 percent tariff on top of the existing ones. So essentially, prices will be raised to the items from Mexico, Canada, and China. They are ready to be set on Tuesday and there are signs that this could begin a trade war.
As a result of these tariffs, Canada took action quick;y: they would impose tariffs of their own. The prime minister of Canada, Justin Trudeau, announced tariffs starting with 25 percent tariffs on approximately $20 billion worth of U.S. goods on Tuesday, with $85 billion more to follow within three weeks. Additionally, China’s leaders also had a plan of retaliation: they would file a case against the United States at the World Trade Organization.
While Trump believes the tariffs will help decrease illegal immigration, drug trafficking, as well as protect American jobs, many American citizens are not happy with these outcomes due to the main fact that goods could get more expensive. “I went to the grocery store and all the fruit was super expensive,” said Rebecca Samara, 11. “I cannot believe the prices of Lululemon and Aritzia are going to increase, they are already expensive,” said Ashlyn Phung, 11. There is a common theme of people saying everything is going to become ridiculously expensive. Many believe that the increased taxes imposed on these countries that supply many of our goods will in turn have a negative impact on the American consumer where the cost will be passed onto the customer.
