Top bank says tariffs cost midsize US firms – and it’s the consumer picking up the tab
Tariffs paid by midsize businesses in the US tripled over the course of the past year.
That’s according to new research tied to JPMorganChase, one of the country’s leading banks – and suggests Donald Trump’s push to charge higher taxes on imports has caused economic disruption.
These additional taxes have meant companies that employ a combined 48 million people in the US – the kinds of businesses Trump had promised to revive – were having to find ways to absorb the new expense.
And that’s been done by passing it along to customers through higher prices, employing fewer workers or accepting lower profits.
“That’s a big change in their cost of doing business,” said Chi Mac, business research director of the JPMorganChase Institute.
“We also see some indications that they may be shifting away from transacting with China and maybe toward some other regions in Asia.”
The research, published yesterday, doesn’t state how additional costs are flowing through the economy, but it indicates tariffs are being paid by US companies.
Growing evidence
It’s part of a growing body of economic analyses countering the administration’s claims that foreigners pay the tariffs.
The authors of the analysis did highlight in an interview that companies are still adjusting to the tariffs, adding they plan to continue studying the issue.
White House spokesman Kush Desai called the analysis “pointless” and doesn’t “change the fact that President Trump was right”.
But this study suggests US companies are paying tariffs that the president previously claimed would be covered by foreign entities.
