Americans are bracing for higher prices on everyday goods following the U.S. government's decision to impose sweeping tariffs on imports, with fears mounting that the added costs will strain household budgets in the coming months.
The move has sparked widespread unease among consumers, particularly low- and middle-income workers, who worry that imported staples, from groceries to household items, will soon become significantly more expensive.
"Basically, eggs, simple things like eggs, simple things like mangoes, pineapples, things that we get imported is going to be more expensive for us. So me, like a low-class working citizen, it's going to be 15 dollars for some eggs. That's more than a trip to work back and forth three days, you know what I mean? It's horrible, it's horrible for us," said Jerome Wilkins, a security guard.
Amelia Guilford, a retail worker, echoed his concerns, noting that the U.S. depends heavily on foreign goods.
"I believe that everything is going to go up because, at the end of the day, America consists of outside. So we can't stop what's coming in and increase. People don't understand in America that we don't make anything here. Everything is imported," she said.
Jose Pena, a janitor, highlighted the uneven impact of rising costs.
"There [are] two different types of people. People who got money, they could do that. But not a lot of people can afford to go or spend an extra 1,000 dollars or 500 dollars on food. So it's not everybody that could do that," he said.
Lois Adams, a nurse, pointed out that some daily essentials simply cannot be sourced domestically.
"There are things in America that we use on the daily, that we consume on the daily, like coffee, that you cannot grow here. We don't have the actual climate. You can't create an eco-climate to buy coffee," she said.
Beyond immediate price increases, some fear the tariffs could disrupt global trade. Sara Pears, a teacher, warned, "I think it's just going to make everything way more expensive and slow down growth, global trade."
Retiree Loretta Brown lamented the steady rise in the cost of living, saying "I mean, everything is going up, nothing is going down. The only thing that's going down is the money."
Pamela Levitt, currently unemployed, criticized the policy's wider implications.
"It affects everything. It trickles down to everything and it makes all of our costs go up. And it's not fair to the other countries either," she said.
Concerns grow as new tariffs threaten to drive up daily cost of living for Americans
China and the European Union (EU) have agreed that it is necessary to provide general guidance on price undertakings for Chinese exporters of passenger battery electric vehicles to the EU, China's commerce ministry said on Monday.
The move aims to address relevant concerns in a more practical, targeted, and consistent manner with World Trade Organization (WTO) rules, according to the Ministry of Commerce in a statement.
Accordingly, the European Commission will issue a Guidance Document on Submission of Price Undertaking Offers. In the document, the EU confirms that it will assess each undertaking application under the same legal criteria, in accordance with the principle of non-discrimination and relevant WTO rules, in an objective and fair manner.
The progress fully reflects the spirit of dialogue and the outcomes of consultations between China and the EU. It shows that both China and the EU have the ability and willingness to properly resolve differences through dialogue and consultation within the framework of WTO rules, thereby maintaining the stability of automotive industrial and supply chains in China, the EU, and the whole world. This is conducive not only to ensuring the healthy development of China-EU economic and trade relations, but also to safeguarding the rules-based international trade order, the statement said.
On the same day, the China Chamber of Commerce for Import and Export of Machinery and Electronic Products (CCCME) also issued a statement welcoming the positive outcome of the consultations.
The CCCME noted that eligible Chinese EV makers may now submit price undertaking applications in accordance with the EU's guidance, and the European Commission has pledged to review all applications objectively, fairly, and under uniform standards.
The proper settlement of this case meets the shared expectations of industries along the EV supply chain in both China and Europe. It will help ensure the security and stability of related industrial and supply chains and safeguard the broader China-EU economic and trade relationship, the CCCME said.
The chamber expressed appreciation for the substantial efforts made by China's Ministry of Commerce in defending the interests of the domestic industry. It also pledged to encourage and support relevant Chinese enterprises in making full use of the consultation outcomes to protect their interests in exporting to the EU and promote healthy cooperation between the industries of both sides.
China, EU agree on price undertaking guidance for Chinese electric vehicle exporters: commerce ministry
