U.S. residents have warned that a trade war is "not good for anyone", with many concerned that U.S. President Donald Trump's tariff measures could backfire by denting market confidence and ultimately driving up prices for American consumers.
Trump has implemented sweeping tariffs on a wide range of countries since taking office, and earlier this month imposed a 10-percent "minimum baseline tariff" on all imports, before unveiling higher rates on certain trading partners.
After triggering days of chaos on the global markets with this announcement, Trump then moved to suspend these higher rates for 90 days on all countries except China -- to whom he doubled down on -- with some Chinese exports now facing staggering tariffs as high as 245 percent.
The controversial move has resulted in increased costs for goods, and has put considerable pressure on domestic businesses and consumers, while international tensions have risen amid the threat of retaliatory tariffs and fears over the trade conflict escalating.
While Trump has repeatedly pursued protectionist measures as part of his so-called 'America First' agenda, many in the U.S. say the tariff policies are in danger of backfiring, and believe the current situation will hit ordinary Americans the hardest.
Albert Solis, an automotive parts salesman, warned that a trade war which undermines market confidence will benefit no one.
"It's not good for anybody at the end, because a trade war is not good for anybody. Because the most important [thing] is the trust, the confidence of the market and it's what is going to affect us all. If it's the market that failed, it could be a big problem," he said.
"[We are] still using a lot of Chinese products, but the biggest providers come from different countries. If this problem is going to expand [to] the rest of the countries as it seems it's going to happen, then it's when the market will suffer a lot because it's not good for anybody at the end," he added.
The wider impact of the tariffs could spell bad news for his business owners like Viktor Yale, who runs a store selling luxury goods. He is concerned that U.S. consumers will suffer the most from higher prices due to the ongoing trade war.
"For the consumer, it's going to be higher. It's going to go right into the price and then it's going to keep on going. But the tariffs are not going to help because it's just not good for the people with the dollar dropping. If the dollar keeps dropping and you’re buying products from overseas, you're basically paying more in tariffs and the products cost more because you're paying for it with U.S. dollars," he said.
US residents warn trade war "not good for anybody" amid fears consumers will pay price
