SALT LAKE CITY — With incoming tariffs scheduled to go into effect on March 4, Utah political and business leaders are looking for ways to minimize the impacts.
25 percent on imports from Canada and Mexico and doubling the existing tariff on imports from China from 10 percent to 20 percent.
“I think you could see the administration get even more aggressive with China than they've already announced,” said Rep. Blake Moore.
Diversifying suppliers is challenging for many Utah companies, like Varex Imaging, said Kim Honeysett, Chief Legal Officer.
“There are unique issues,” she said. “Replacing components in a medical device that is regulated is extremely difficult, and you can't just switch suppliers.”
She suggests stockpiling materials now that are only made in the countries Trump is imposing tariffs on.
“We have also pre-purchased in bulk a lot of materials,” she said. “So for some materials, we now have a five-year supply.”
These tariffs could be called off though, said Philip Poel, Senior Vice President of Global Supply Chain with Traeger Grills.
“Don't move too quickly, because things could be pulsing back and forth,” he said. “We've seen that happen before, so I caution groups on saying, ‘Wow, if I'm in China, I'm going to flee and move to Vietnam,’ or, ‘I'm going to flee and move to Thailand or to Mexico,’ only to find out that months or a year later, that it's been redacted and pulled back, and now you have made all of these moves, costs and everything.”
To support Utah businesses, the World Trade Center Utah can submit feedback anonymously on behalf of businesses, said Ben Kolendar, Chief of Staff.
“We’re happy to collect information from you on your challenges abroad and put that into something that’s anonymous so that you’re not facing perhaps repercussions for a public post,” he said.
Public comments need to be submitted by March 7, with more information linked here.
