Trump tariffs on Canadian, Mexican goods to impact metro Atlanta businesses, customers, farmers
Trump tariffs affect Georgia businesses
Metro Atlanta businesses that rely on products from Mexico and China are bracing for impact from the newly imposed tariffs by the Trump administration. The White House has ordered 25% tariffs on imports from Canada and Mexico, two of the U.S.'s largest trading partners.
ATLANTA - Metro Atlanta business owners who rely on products from Mexico and Canada are bracing for the impact of tariffs imposed by the Trump administration that went into effect Saturday.
Trump orders tariffs for Canada, Mexico, China
What we know:
President Donald Trump ordered tariffs of 25% on imports from Canada and Mexico, the United States’ two largest trading partners.
The tariffs started Saturday.
Both Canada and Mexico have announced they will respond with their own tariffs on U.S. goods.
RELATED: Trump signs tariff order; Mexico and Canada retaliate
Tariffs may affect your grocery bill, Super Bowl spread
Why you should care:
Economist and professor of finance at Emory’s Goizueta Business School, Tom Smith, says if the tariffs continue people will see higher prices on everyday goods.
"Businesses are going to pass as many of those costs on to consumers as possible. Consumers are going to be upset immediately. They're so anxious about high prices as it is," Smith said.
One example of these higher prices will be from fruits and vegetables, like avocados from Mexico.
"If you get agricultural products from Mexico, you're going to have to pay more. And we've got the Super Bowl coming up. The Super Bowl weekend is the largest consumption of avocados for the entire year," Smith said.
But, he said it’s much more than just food.
Many cars and trucks are assembled in Mexico and those would all fall under these tariffs.
"Ford is a publicly traded company, so they're going to pass those costs on to the person who's buying a Ford in March or April or May. So, you know, your next Ford might be more expensive than your last because now there's a tariff attached to that," Smith said.
Trump tariffs impact metro Atlanta businesses
Local perspective:
Owner of Stanley’s Cigar Lounge in South Fulton Monica Coleman, says even though their main attraction is cigars, they sell a lot of tequila and beer.
"Tonight we have 13 different tequilas. Two of our top-selling beers are imported from Mexico. So it’s a little concerning how these tariffs may impact my customers," Coleman said.
Coleman says they’ve always tried to keep prices reasonable, even through pandemic-era supply chain problems.
But she worries they won’t be able to do that this time.
"As a neighborhood community establishment, we’ve tried our best to absorb as much of that as possible, but we have to figure out how to service our customers and keep our doors open and be profitable," she said.
Coleman says they’re working now to figure out how they can best keep their customers happy without pricing them out of a good time.
Georgia farmers to feel Trump tariffs
The impact, Smith says, won’t just be felt by Georgia’s customers and business owners, but by its farmers as well.
"When Mexico and Canada engage in retaliatory tariffs, then what's going to happen is that our farmers, like our pecan farmers, our Vidalia onion farmers right here in Georgia, they're not going to be able to export as many of their products to either Mexico or Canada or China, eventually. Which means, farmers in Georgia will see lower sales, lower revenue," Smith said.
The Source: Information for this story was provided by the White House and from interviews with Monica Coleman of Stanley's Cigar Lounge and Emory professor and economist, Tom Smith, both conducted by reporter Eric Mock.