New tariffs will cost shoe importers an extra $1 billion
13/12/2019
AAFA chief executive, Rick Helfenbein, said in the letter that the trade dispute with China, which began in 2018, had “caused severe damage” to companies, workers and consumers in the US. He said member companies had made it clear to the AAFA that tariffs on goods they import from China have resulted in “extraordinary costs” and created “enormous problems”.
He continued: “These costs, many of which were suddenly imposed, stifle investments, impede market access, lead to the loss of jobs, and raise prices for families. The uncertainty associated with the talks only magnifies the pain by forcing companies to create and constantly revisit tariff-mitigation scenarios.”
According to AAFA calculations, 92% of apparel and 53% of footwear imports into the US from China were affected by a 15% tariff that came into effect on September 1, 2019. AAFA has estimated that if the new December 15 tariffs go through, apparel and footwear importers will face additional costs of more than $350 million and more than $1 billion per year respectively.
A campaign group called Tariffs Hurt the Heartland has estimated that the US-China trade dispute has so far cost US consumers more than $40 billion.
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