My cousin’s wedding is in late March and, like always, I don’t have a dress. I search the internet for potential options and after days of searching for the perfect outfit at an affordable price from a Canadian brand, I go to check out and am hit with a huge tax plus shipping costs. Now, I’m left searching for a new dress in an already expensive market.
Clothing is one of the many goods being affected by President Trump’s new 25% tariff on imports coming from Mexico and Canada along with a 20% tariff on imports coming from China. According to Canada’s Department of Finance, 1,256 types of goods are subject to the 25% tariff when they import into the U.S.. The Yale Budget Lab estimates this to be a 1% to 1.2% increase in prices which is around the average household losing $1,600 to $2,000.
What does this mean for the average high school student? Since these tariffs damage the economies of these affected countries, causing billions of dollars in revenue for these industries to be lost, it means prices on these imports are raised for U.S. buyers.
If you’re working a $15 an hour job waiting tables or stocking shelves or working a register at a store in town, you’re going to have to save up even longer for that pair of overpriced sneakers. It may not seem like a big deal to some but when the price of goods are already expensive, having any financial freedom to buy clothes or repair your car without begging your parents for money is going to become even harder.
The tariffs will not only harm the economies of the countries who are the target of the tariff but the prices of household necessities Americans buy daily will rise. Food, car parts, hygiene products, technology and paper products among other goods that these countries produce are affected by this protective tariff.
The White House says that these tariffs are meant to lead to agreements with Canada and Mexico to stop illegal immigration and the smuggling of fentanyl at the U.S. borders. Although these tariffs are meant to help our countries come to agreements, it could incite a trade war with Canada and Mexico, with Canada already issuing 25% tariffs against $155 billion worth of American goods in retaliation according to the Prime Minister of Canada. This would only hurt U.S. industries along with the tariffs on Canadian goods raising prices for the average person.
As a student, balancing school, extracurriculars and studying is a difficult task but as I get older, being able to make financial decisions is becoming more important. I want to be able to buy my own clothing that I like. I want to buy my own food instead of relying on my parents to actually look at my texts when I tell them what I want from the store, something they never end up doing.
I want to have financial freedom but soon that could become impossible if I can’t afford to keep up with rising prices when I already don’t make a lot as a high school student. It further hinders my limited freedom as a teenager and prevents me from making my own decisions with the money I earn.
