Tariffs, immigration crackdown likely to hit economy
By Augusta Saraiva, Amara Omeokwe and Enda Curran / Bloomberg Opinion
President Trump’s efforts to curb immigration are coming at a precarious time for the U.S. labor market, threatening to choke off a key growth engine just as tariffs are poised to drag down economic activity.
Crossings of undocumented migrants essentially came to a halt last month after surging to unprecedented levels in the aftermath of the pandemic. The crackdown is expected to intensify as the Trump administration ramps up raids, encourages undocumented immigrants to “self-deport” and takes measures to restrain legal immigration as well.
Economists say these actions will reduce job creation and stoke inflation, exacerbating anticipated consequences of the administration’s trade policies that are fueling recession fears. The 5.5 million immigrants — undocumented and legal — who joined the workforce since 2020 helped the U.S. labor market bounce back and fuel economic growth in recent years. The current restrictions, and threats of mass deportations, risk derailing that trend.
“Population growth helped economic growth, that’s pretty clear; so you’re taking that away from the picture now,” said Olu Sonola, head of US economic research at Fitch Ratings. “The combination of a slowdown in the labor force and the drag on economic growth from much higher tariffs paints a much weaker growth picture and a much higher inflation picture in 2025.”
https://www.heraldnet.com/opinion/comment-tariffs-immigration-crackdown-likely-to-hit-economy/
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