Michigan businesses concerned as tariff dispute between U.S. and Canada escalates
Trade talks between Canada and the U.S. broke down late Friday, prompting the U.S. to impose hefty new tariffs on Canada and Canada to prepare retaliatory tariffs on U.S. goods next month.
The back-and-forth uncertainty with tariffs has businesses in Michigan and across the U.S. concerned for their employees and their customers.
Michael Howard, a Michigan woodworker who started his company from the ground up, says he already feels the effect from gas prices. He is concerned about how he will stay afloat because he says he and other businesses are not being given the time to properly prepare for the impact of the tariffs.
"It's just this constant state of chaos that we are in as business owners, as Americans, as an international community," Howard said.
He calls it the "hold your breath" period.
Like many businesses, Howard is wondering what will happen with the tariff agreement with Canada and America because until then, it's not possible to properly plan.
"We are in the process of ordering lumber right now. We are trying to figure out how much can we bulk order? Is it smart to bulk order now? Should we wait?" Howard said.
CBS News Detroit spoke to the CEO of the Detroit Regional Chamber, Sandy Baruah. He says there are positives to tariffs, such as more jobs being created to produce goods in the U.S. rather than importing them. But he says a tax won't just impact businesses; it would be passed on to consumers.
"Tariffs are a tax that are paid by businesses, but primarily by consumers. So, when people complain about affordability, tariffs are a pretty big part of that," Baruah said.
He knows that planning for business or facility development takes time, and not knowing how much tariffs would impact a business's budget is tricky.
"Chasing the American dream, that's what we are trying to do for ourselves and those around us, but that makes it exhaustingly challenging," Baruah said.
Experts are also concerned the tax will complicate the long-standing relationship with the country just on the other side of the Detroit River.
"According to the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago, we are the most intertwined state with our friends in Canada than any other of the 49 states. So, tariffs, trade policy is incredibly important to our businesses and our employees," Baruah said.
According to CBS News, U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer told Fox News there are "no new planned talks with the Canadians."
Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney said Saturday that Canada "in the coming days" will release the details of new tariff measures, which will "come into force" the Tuesday after Labor Day.
