U.S. Chamber analysis: Tariffs threaten $181M in Utah exports

By Brice Wallace

Pipe. Pudding. Pork. Makeup prep.

What do those products have in common? According to the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, they are among items produced and exported by Utah companies that are at risk from China, the European Union, Mexico and Canada imposing new tariffs in retaliation to new U.S. tariffs on imported goods.

The state-by-state chamber analysis indicates that $181.3 million in Utah exports are threatened by an emerging trade war. About $80 million in Utah exports to China are targeted for retaliation. The figure is $65 million in exports to Canada, $26 million to Mexico and $10 million to Europe, it said.

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“Tariffs are beginning to take a toll on American businesses, workers, farmers and consumers as overseas markets close to American-made products and prices increase here at home,” said Thomas J. Donohue, U.S. chamber president and CEO. “Tariffs are simply taxes that raise prices for everyone. Tariffs that beget tariffs that beget more tariffs only lead to a trade war that will cost American jobs and economic growth.”

The chamber said that approximately $75 billion worth of U.S. exports are subject to retaliatory tariffs.

“Escalating tit-for-tat trade actions promise to raise costs on American businesses and consumers, making it harder for families to afford everyday products like toilet paper, condiments, coffee and ballpoint pens, which have been targeted for retaliation,” the chamber said.

The analysis indicates that the hardest-hit Utah products exported to China are forage products such as hay, clover and vetches ($49.7 million annually); aluminum waste and scraps ($26 million); and milk-based products ($1.4 million).

Among at-risk products exported to Canada are steel bars and rods ($12.8 million annually); aluminum alloy bars, rods and nonhollow profiles ($9.3 million); and bread, pastries, cakes and puddings ($4.7 million).

Exports to Mexico subject to retaliatory tariffs include food preparations ($18.2 million), pipe and oil line ($1.5 million), and frozen pork products ($960,000).

At-risk products exported from Utah to the EU include eye makeup preparations ($3.1 million); powder makeup and preps, including rouge and baby powder ($1.9 million); and pipe and iron, ($1.8 million).

The analysis also said that 387,200 Utah jobs are supported by global trade.

Utah’s $181.3 million figure pales in comparison to some other states’. The analysis indicates that $3.9 billion in Texas exports are subject to retaliatory tariffs. The figure is $3.6 billion for Alabama, $3 billion for South Carolina, $2.3 billion for Michigan, $1.7 billion for Pennsylvania and $1 billion for Wisconsin.

“The administration is threatening to undermine the economic progress it worked so hard to achieve,” Donohue said. “We should seek free and fair trade, but this is just not the way to do it. It’s time to reverse course and adopt smarter, more effective approaches for addressing trade concerns with commercial partners.”

The chamber analysis is available at www.thewrongapproach.com.

Meanwhile, U.S. Sen. Mike Lee, R-Utah, and the Salt Lake Chamber are among those supporting a bill that would require the president to submit to Congress any proposal to raise tariffs in the interest of national security. The bill, offered by Sen. Bob Corker, R-Tenn., has 15 co-sponsors, including eight Republicans and six Democrats. It has been referred to the Senate Committee on Finance.

The bill has the support of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, dozens of trade groups and 222 state and local chambers of commerce.

“The tariffs announced by the president this year impose a tax hike on the American people — one that will harm both workers and consumers,” Lee said. “While I am sympathetic to the issues facing domestic steel manufacturers, there are better ways to address the steel industry’s concerns. I am proud to be working with Sen. Corker to find a way for Congress to solve this problem.”

“Utah is a trade surplus state and one of the fastest-growing export economies in the country,” said Derek B. Miller, president and CEO of the Salt Lake Chamber. “This is a credit to the thousands of Utah companies that are competing and winning in the global economy. Tariffs and trade wars will have a negative impact on Utah’s economic success. Congress should assert its authority under the Constitution to ensure that any tariffs imposed under the guise of national security are weighed with the need to safeguard our nation’s economic prosperity.”{/mprestriction}