The long-term effects of tariffs are gradually becoming apparent to American consumers after the United States imposed tariffs on the vast majority of its trading partners in 2025.
At a Walmart in Long Island City, New York, many Americans said that prices for everything in supermarkets are rising, forcing them to change their shopping habits or wait for sales.
"I checked all around. I checked all over. I waited for sales because I could not afford it, and the other brand I didn't like," said Jenny, a customer.
Media reports said the price of raw coffee beans, commonly found in American households, jumped nearly 35 percent between August and November when most of the U.S. tariffs were in place.
The price increase is also clearly reflected in beef. Currently, the average retail price per pound of ground beef has increased by about 16 percent year on year, while the price increase for beef shank is even more significant, rising by about 25 percent year on year.
Common American foods such as hamburgers and lasagna rely heavily on beef, and the rising meat prices have forced many consumers to switch to chicken or even beans and eggs as alternatives.
"Usually I buy chicken, because chicken is the one that the price is a little bit more affordable. I'm here every week, and they go up like a dollar, and some packages three dollars, two dollars, so everything is going higher and higher. It's getting very difficult to live right now," said shopper Damaria.
Some U.S. economists have stated that the costs of tariffs are expected to be gradually passed on to consumers over the coming months in a process that will be lengthy and gradual.
Analysts believe that while the price increases may be small and gradual, which may be bearable to some consumers, for those with tight budgets, this slowly escalating cost pressure is eroding their lives little by little.
U.S. consumers feel pinch of high tariffs
The Israeli government is set to prohibit 37 international aid organizations from operating in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank effective Jan 1, 2026, after authorities stated the groups failed to comply with stricter registration requirements, according to an Israeli media report on Tuesday.
The report from The Times of Israel cited the statement from Israel's Ministry of Diaspora Affairs and Combating Antisemitism, saying that the new regulations are based on security concerns aimed at removing non-government organizations' staff allegedly linked to so-called "terrorist organizations."
The report came after the Israeli government announced the same day that it would suspend the activities of several international aid organizations, including Doctors Without Borders, in the Gaza Strip starting January 1, 2026, citing the organizations' failure to submit information on their Palestinian staff as required.
Last year, Israel rolled out new regulations on registration requiring international aid groups to provide detailed information of their staff's names, funding sources, and operation status.
On Wednesday, Israel's Coordinator of Government Activities in the Territories stated that the registration mandates were necessary to prevent humanitarian supplies from being exploited by Hamas.
In an online interview with China Global Television Network (CGTN) on Wednesday, Bushra Khalidi, policy lead at Oxfam, a global organization that fights inequality to end poverty and injustice, said the impact of the ban will be "devastating."
"It is devastating. We've seen the numbers from the IPC (Integrated Food Security Phase Classification) a few weeks ago. We saw them in the summer. There's been a slight improvement, but that's not good enough for the time of a ceasefire. And six months after the famine was declared, we should have seen much more improvement in Gaza," said Khalidi.
"It's winter here in Palestine. It was raining. It rained a record (amount) of rain per millimeter yesterday in Palestine since 1992. So, the impact is devastating. But the fact that shelter materials, for example, cannot enter. For families, this will mean slower repairs. It will mean fewer supplies. It will mean a longer wait for basic services. It will directly affect the access to clean water, to sanitation, to shelter materials, to public health interventions. Aid that should be moving predictably will remain delayed, it will remain restricted and it will remain stranded," she added.
She also emphasized that the operating environment became nearly impossible for organizations to navigate long before the new ban was announced.
"We have been obstructed and blocked from operating freely and unobstructedly for the last two years by Israel. Israel has killed a record number of humanitarian workers in the last two years. It has bombed our premises, it has bombed our convoys, it has blocked our items. It has driven famine like conditions in Gaza because of blocking humanitarian access. So, I think it's really important to set that scene, is that what is happening now is nothing new. It only continues within the kind of campaign that Israel has orchestrated to drive basically the population of Gazans' survival. So, we are, we have not been able to enter any materials in since March, in fact, us and many other organizations. And of course that has severely restricted our ability to scale up our operations," said Khalidi.
Hadja Lahbib, European Commissioner for Equality, Preparedness and Crisis Management, said on Wednesday that Israel's move is no different from cutting off lifesaving supplies for the local population, adding that the European Union has made clear that all obstacles to humanitarian access must be lifted.
Israel bans operations of 37 int'l aid groups in Gaza Strip, West Bank
