J.J. McCullough wrote

> At first, Americans didn�t seem to mind U.S.
> President Donald Trump�s tariffs too much. Even
> duties on tens of billions worth of products, after
> all, don�t amount to much in a $19-trillion economy,
> which happens, incidentally, to be growing at record
> speed.
>
>
> That, though, appears to be changing. U.S.
> businesses from construction companies to farmers
> are beginning to feel the pain of the counter
> tariffs triggered by Trump�s policies. And as the
> White House broadens its target for potential tariff
> from materials and intermediate inputs to things
> like autos, seafood and handbags, American families
> will increasingly feel the pinch as well.
>
> The U.S. economy grew by a whopping 4.1 per cent
> between April and June, the fastest pace in four
> years and a clear win for the president, who eagerly
> gloated about it before it was even released to the
> public. Still, U.S. businesses affected by the
> administration�s growing tariffs list have a bleak
> outlook on what might come next.
>
> �The threat to the U.S. economy is less about a
> question of �if� and more about �when� and �how
> bad,�� David French of the National Retail
> Federation (NRF), which represents America�s
> retailers, said in a recent statement.
>
> Here�s a look at some of the effects that the trade
> war has had and the further damage it could do if
> the White House follows through with its threats of
> tariffs on autos and more Chinese imports.
>
> WATCH: What is a trade war? How does it work? And
> how will it impact Canadian consumers?
>
>
> Pricier homes and fewer of them
>
> The Trump administration�s 20 per cent tariff on
> Canadian softwood lumber has been pushing up the
> cost of new houses. That is adding nearly $9,000 to
> the cost of a detached home and more than $3,000 to
> that of a multi-family unit, the National
> Association of Home Builders (NAHB) said in June.
>
> This is happening at a time when U.S. homebuyers are
> being squeezed by both climbing interest rates and
> home prices that have now bounced past their pre-
> recession peak.
>
> Trump�s duties, which have caused lumber prices to
> rise �sharply higher than the tariff rate would
> indicate,� NAHB said, adding that this is �hurting
> housing affordability in markets across the nation.�
>
> And as home prices soar beyond the reach of American
> families, demand for new homes is ebbing. U.S.
> housing starts plunged by over 12 per cent in June,
> according to U.S. government data.
>
> �The lumber tariffs Trump imposed on Canadian lumber
> that went into effect last year impacted those
> numbers considerably,� Ross Litkenhous of real
> estate consulting giant Altus Group told Global
> News.
>
> Canadian lumber imports are currently the largest
> supplier to the annual U.S. softwood lumber market,
> accounting for about 28 per cent of U.S. sales per
> year over the past decade.
>
> WATCH: What Trump hopes to accomplish with trade war
>
>
> Unhappy farmers and frozen meat stacks
>
> U.S. farmers have been hit hard by counter-tariffs
> imposed by China, Mexico and other countries on
> products like pork and soybeans.
>
> More than 1-billion kilograms of frozen meat are
> piling up in U.S. warehouses as sales in key export
> markets slow, the Wall Street Journal has reported.
>
> This prompted the Trump administration to announce
> this week up to $12 billion in emergency aid for the
> sector.
>
> But the emergency money seems to have done little to
> assuage farmers in politically key states like Iowa,
> Missouri and Wisconsin.
>
> �We don�t want payments,� Dave Warner, the spokesman
> for the National Pork Producers Council said of the
> proposal. �What we really want is the trade disputes
> to end, and then the tariffs will go away.�
>
> That was the sentiment that echoed through the
> statements Midwest farmers gave to the media after
> the White House announced its relief package.
>
> �We, as farmers, don�t want handouts. �Neal
> Bredehoeft, a corn and soybean farmer in Missouri,
> said.
>
> But unpopular as the move has proven to be so far,
> the White House may soon be forced to replicate it.
>
> Fishermen may need soon need a bailout, too. China�s
> retaliatory duties, for example, have also hit U.S.
> lobster exports (and, incidentally, helped Canada�s
> exports), prompting Democrats in Congress to push
> for assistance for the industry.
>
> Still, America�s seafood woes may be about to get a
> lot worse.
>
> The tentative list of $200 billion worth of Chinese
> imports on which Trump would like to slap new
> tariffs includes a baffling amount of fish and
> seafood products. Wholly nine pages of the 205-page
> document provided by the Office of the U.S. Trade
> Representative are devoted to fish � anything from
> tilapia, catfish and carp to shrimp, smoked salmon
> and prawns.
>
> While the trade war has so far mostly hurt U.S.
> exporters, American consumers are likely to get
> caught in the crossfire.
>
> Sharply higher prices for cars, trucks and SUVs
>
> The White House is still evaluating whether to
> impose a 25 per cent tax on all imports of cars,
> trucks, SUVs and auto parts. But the mere threat of
> those tariffs, along with the impact of duties
> already imposed on steel and aluminium, is already
> hurting U.S. automakers.
>
> Stocks of General Motors and Fiat Chrysler
> Automobiles took a dive on Wednesday as both
> companies lowered their 2018 profit forecasts and
> investors fretted about what might be yet to come.
>
> If the auto tariffs take effect, Americans would end
> up paying between $1,400 and $7,000 more for a new
> ride, according to estimates from the Peterson
> Institute for International Economics (PIIE).
>
> �Increased import tariffs could lead to a smaller
> GM, a reduced presence at home and abroad for this
> iconic American company, and risk less � not more �
> U.S. jobs,� GM recently said in a submission to the
> U.S. Department of Commerce.
>
> The industry would shed over 600,000 jobs in the
> U.S. if the White House imposed the tariffs and
> other countries retaliated in kind, the PIIE has
> estimated.
>
> President Trump did walk back the idea of imposing
> duties on car imports from Europe after meeting with
> European Union (EU) officials in Washington this
> week.
>
> But while the rendezvous could be the first step in
> a significant de-escalation of trade tensions, both
> White House and the EU have yet to provide firm
> commitments.
>
>
>
>
> Unaffordable clothes, laptops and smartphones
>
> The auto tariffs aren�t the only trade duties
> threatened by the Trump administration that would
> directly target consumer goods. The White House
> proposal for tariffs on $200-billion worth of
> Chinese imports would raise the price of a number of
> everyday items, from shampoo and petroleum jelly to
> baseball gloves.
>
> Speaking for U.S. retailers, French called the
> proposal �a reckless strategy that will boomerang
> back to harm U.S. families and workers.�
>
> And yet the president has already mentioned the idea
> of extending the tariffs to all Chinese imports, a
> move that would affect an additional $262-billion
> worth of goods, according to PIIE. This time, it
> would affect products like sweaters, sneakers and
> even laptops and smartphones.
>
> How much can the U.S. economy take?
>
> It may take a while for the effect of tariffs to
> show up in the U.S.�s GDP figures. Many of the
> recent duties didn�t take effect until close to the
> middle of the year and didn�t really register in the
> latest data release.
>
> On the contrary, exports provided an additional
> boost to GDP, partly because the prospect of
> upcoming tariffs prompted a temporary surge in
> soybean exports.
>
> And corporate tax cuts and record-low unemployment
> are helping to keep both businesses and workers
> happy.
>
> But an ever-expanding list of tariffs could soon
> sour the mood on both Wall Street and Main Street.
>
> � With a file from Global News online reporter
> Jessica Vomie
>
>
> https://globalnews.ca/news/4356633/housing-frozen-
> meat-trump-tariffs-hurting-americans/
>