Tariffs--Everything you need to know but were afraid to ask
During his presidential campaign, President Trump pledged to impose universal tariffs of 10–60% on all U.S. imports—a whopping $4.2 trillion in goods and services purchased from abroad in 2024. This was always a real possibility. The International Economic Emergency Powers Act gives the president broad authority to do so. In early February the Trump administration seemed to be making good on the threat to enact extremely high and broad-based tariffs. They announced tariffs of 25% on all goods from Mexico and all goods (except energy goods) from Canada, as well as tariffs of 10% on all goods from China, though ultimately punting on action against our neighbors for one month. These three countries combined account for over 40% of goods imports to the United States. Tariffs this high and applied to such a broad scope of U.S. imports would have constituted a highly significant change in economic policy. Almost immediately, the Mexican and Canadian tariffs were suspended for a month. Yet, all this highlights that historically large and broad-based tariffs remain a very possible policy outcome in the coming years. This FAQ provides information on the likely effects of these tariffs and, crucially, the effects that will not occur due to these tariffs.
Can tariffs ever be effectively used to target smart policymaking goals?
In brief: Yes. Tariffs can do a number of useful things. Three broad uses include:
providing effective protection for domestic production in specific economic sectors
shielding U.S. workers from unfair forms of competition from specific trading partners (like those with abusive labor rights regimes)
complementing a country’s strong domestic climate policy when trading partners’ policies are not as strong
https://www.epi.org/publication/tariffs-everything-you-need-to-know-but-were-afraid-to-ask/
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