Summary
German engine maker Deutz said it will fully pass Trump’s new 20% tariffs on EU imports to American customers through price hikes.
The move underscores warnings that tariffs act as consumer taxes and could raise inflation.
Trump claimed the tariffs as necessary to combat trade imbalances and protect U.S. manufacturing. However, EU officials, including Ursula von der Leyen, pushed for zero-for-zero tariff deals, but Trump rejected them.
The EU plans retaliatory tariffs by mid-April. Economists and officials warn of recession risks and disrupted supply chains.
TomMasz@lemmy.world 6 days ago
That’s exactly how tariffs work. It’s always been how tariffs work. No company is going to lower profits if they don’t have to.
Clent@lemmy.dbzer0.com 6 days ago
Some of them will end up with increased profits because Trump supporters are prepared to pay more. As we saw in the last inflation cycle, the incentive to exploit a crisis to increase margins is hard to ignore.
pc486@sh.itjust.works 6 days ago
Yes and sometimes worse. When a market cannot bear a price increase, the product simply ceases to exist. E.g. a low end $800 bike would never sell at $1,600.
dvoraqs@lemmy.world 5 days ago
I think you need a more extreme number if you say the words “would never sell” because that is only double the price.
With the other inflation we’ve seen, especially for the price of eggs, and upcoming tariffs those kinds of changes are not unheard of.
Supply and demand would still say that there would be less products designed and produced, but unless we are talking about specific branding, I would be surprised if supply or demand for any kind of product drops to zero.