Trump says he’ll hike China tariffs on his first day in office
Bobby Dalheim //Senior Editor of Case Goods and Global Sourcing//November 26, 2024
Washington– President-elect Donald Trump confirmed that he would impose tariffs on China, Mexico and Canada right after assuming office in January.
China is a major supplier of home textiles to the U.S., and in some categories of business, it is the dominant source for goods. That is particularly true for man-made fiber (MMF) products. Mexico and Canada account for a negligible amount of home textiles imports.
A handful of home textiles categories made in China are excluded from the current tariffs. Earlier this year, those exclusions were extended to May 31, 2025. It is unclear whether the Trump administration plans to continue the exclusion policy.
Related: US extends tariff exclusions on some Chinese textiles at the 11th hour
Posting to his Truth Social page, Trump first singled out Mexico and China:
“On January 20, as one of my many first Executive Orders, I will sign all necessary documents to charge Mexico and Canada a 25% Tariff on ALL products coming into the United States, and its ridiculous Open Borders,” he wrote. “This Tariff will remain in effect until such time as Drugs, in particular Fentanyl, and all Illegal Aliens stop this Invasion of our Country!”
He added that both Mexico and Canada “have the absolute right and power to easily solve this long-simmering problem.”
In a second post, Trump targeted China, saying he’d impose a 10% tariff.
“I have had many talks with China about the massive amounts of drugs, in particular Fentanyl, being sent into the United States – But to no avail,” he wrote. “Representatives of China told me that they would institute their maximum penalty, that of death, for any drug dealers caught doing this but, unfortunately, they never followed through, and drugs are pouring into our Country, mostly through Mexico, at levels never seen before. Until such time as they stop, we will be charging China an additional 10% Tariff, above any additional Tariffs, on all of their many products coming into the United States.”
Notably, Trump didn’t describe any 60% to 100% tariff on China, figures he floated during his 2024 presidential campaign.
Soon after the posts, the Canadian dollar and Mexican peso fell sharply against the dollar.
Also, a spokesman for the Chinese Embassy in Washington posted a response on social platform X.
“China-US economic and trade cooperation is mutually beneficial in nature. No one will win a trade war or tariff war,” wrote spokesman Liu Pengyu, adding that for China to knowingly allowing “fentanyl precursors to flow into the United States runs completely counter to facts and reality.”
According to the Daily Mail, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau called Trump two hours after the Truth Social posts. The two reportedly had a “constructive conversation.”
Economists and retail groups, including the National Retail Federation, have largely pushed back on these tariffs, with many saying tariffs would increase inflation and take even more money out of the pockets of consumers.
These tariffs would have a substantial impact on America and on world trade at large. Together, China, Canada and Mexico account for more than one-third of all goods and services both imported and exported by the U.S. In 2023, per the NY Times, the three countries purchased more than $1 trillion of U.S. exports and exported nearly $1.5 trillion of product to the U.S.
