By: Ashton Nardella

Justifying the implementation of steep tariffs with the supposed mistreatment of the United States in matters of international trade, the Trump administration is leading an all-out trade war against both its enemies and its allies. 

But what are tariffs? 

Kelly Terhune, the Assistant Professor of Business and Economics here at Wesleyan, helped break down what exactly these tariffs are. 

“[Tariffs are] a tax that has a legal incidence on the supplier to pay, but [the] effective incidence is likely going to be on the consumer. So the supplier’s legally required to pay it, but they’re probably going to pass that price down to the consumer,” Terhune explained. 

This, of course, is not good news for the Average American. 

“We’ll see it in the form of prices will be higher, which by definition is inflation,” Terhune said. 

This level of inflation can be seen at your local grocery store already. Foreign imports like coffee (primarily from Latin American countries like Brazil and Colombia) and bananas (primarily from Guatemala and Costa Rica) are surging. 

“Economists are now predicting that we will go into a recession, if not a depression. as a result of this…  but a recession is pretty likely because you’re going to see prices go skyrocketing,” Terhune continued. 

Tariffs have been levied against the likes of our next-door neighbors, Canada and Mexico, as well as our allies in the European Union and the U.K, causing some international tension as well as economic fallout. 

“The stock market has dropped significantly— every stock has lost value. So, [these tariffs are] having a global impact in the global stock market, which means it’s affecting companies that aren’t even based in the United States. 
So, the US is viewed as this powerhouse in the world, but I think that view of us is currently changing because of the tariffs,” Terhune said. 

For the Trump Administration, these tariffs are also supposed to be a means to bring more manufacturing jobs to the United States. 
“[The U.S. has] this thing called comparative advantage, and it means that just because we can produce something, doesn’t mean we should produce it. Because if we don’t produce it and somebody else can produce it cheaper, we should allow them to produce it, because then the cost for everybody will be lower. But I do think that the Trump administration’s goal is to bring jobs here. But are they jobs that people are going to want?” Terhune said.