SALT LAKE CITY — Tariffs set to be imposed on the U.S.’s two top trading partners, Canada and Mexico, were paused Monday.
The month-long delay comes after the Trump administration swiftly moved to enact them over the course of the weekend.
“I thought I knew what was going on last night, I had a feeling it might shift this morning,” said Elena Patel, an assistant professor with the University of Utah’s Eccles School of Business. “Right now, we’re all sort of hanging onto the roller coaster and trying to get a sense of where the news cycle is moving.”
Even in the fast-moving world of business, the ever-changing landscape around the impending tariffs on Mexico and Canada is keeping experts like Patel on their toes.
“By the middle of today, the tariffs were on pause for a month, and so I don’t think there’s any way to predict where this is going,” Patel said.
She says if they do take effect, it could take a serious toll on our supply chain.
“It’s not a U.S. supply chain; it’s a US-Mexico-Canada supply chain,” said Patel. “Products go across the borders six, seven, eight times during the production process. The disruption that will be caused by tariffs is almost uncountable."
While businesses will carry the initial burden of the tariffs, Patel says that you, the consumer, will feel the weight of these decisions in the long run.
“Because what we know, as we’ve had many tariffs in the past, is that businesses pass these costs right on to consumers,” Patel said.
Southern Utah Professor David Berri pointed out that even with a month’s delay, businesses will be left with no choice — other than to raise prices.
“Imagine if you’re just operating a business and somebody comes along and puts a tax on your business,” said Berri. “Well, you can expect to be doing less business.”
With both sides of the transaction set to feel the impact, these professors hope cooler heads prevail.
“This seems to be a negotiation tactic of this administration,” said Patel. “But there was good progress today to avoid implementing the tariffs.”
