Initial relief, followed by a rush to stock inventory, following the U.S.'s temporary tariff reduction on Chinese imports.
Rewritten Article:
Score one for Bonnie Ross, a New York clothing importer – for about five minutes. The temporary cut in tariffs on China brought relief, but the race was on as Ross scrambled to get as much product to the US as she could before the lower tariffs expire.
"It was a huge breath of fresh air, but just for a brief moment," Ross says. "Now it's gonna be a mad dash because everyone is eager to get their merchandise exported to the US before the 90 days are up."
For importers like Ross, the news of lower tariffs on Chinese imports is a double-edged sword, offering a temporary break but prolonging uncertainty.
The U.S. and China struck a deal to slash crippling tariffs, with the tax on Chinese imports to the US falling from 145% to 30%, and the tariff China charges on U.S. goods decreasing from 125% to 10%. However, the remaining tariffs are still much higher than the rates before President Trump's trade war.
Navigating the 3-Month Gap
Jay Foreman, who runs a toy manufacturing company in Florida, heard the news at 4:30 a.m., and immediately called associates in Hong Kong to start scheduling shipments.
"We've been hanging on to our products at the factories and ports, because we didn't want to risk shipping anything with the old, higher tariffs," Foreman says. "But with a 30% import tax, it's more manageable, even though we'll inevitably have to pass some of that cost on to consumers in the form of price hikes."
Some businesses might rush to produce and ship products early to avoid the risk of higher tariffs in the fall, Foreman says, but it's also a gamble. The administration might decide to extend the lower tariff rates beyond the 90-day window.
"Right now, I'm just trying to get through the next month or two," he says. "I might need another few weeks to figure out if I need to double-shift the factories to crank out more products and meet the demand for the holiday shopping season."
Better than Nothing, but Uncertainty Lingers
Jonathan Silva, who heads a Massachusetts-based company producing high-end board games in China, stands to benefit from the tariff reduction. He has nine containers of merchandise he has been holding in China that he will now send to the United States.
"We need to get our products back on shelves," Silva says. "Without the tariff reduction, our business might very well have gone bankrupt."
Silva is not and Apple Pie-eyed, though. He's aware that the 30% tariff is not ideal. "I expect some slight price hikes," he adds.
But for now, Silva is busy placing orders to ensure he can meet the demand for the holiday shopping season. "The taps are open now," he says. "Everyone is going to be placing orders over the next week or so, and we're placing our orders today for what we think we can get done in the next 90 days and save as much of our business for the holidays as we can."
Whatever the tarif landscape looks like in 90 days, Silva is prepared to look for alternatives to manufacturing in China, exploring other Asian countries and the US.
"The past 40 days have been the worst in our business's history," he says. "And I'm glad we're coming out of it. But we don't know what's around the corner."
Copyright 2025 NPR
The industry of clothing importing, like Bonnie Ross's, finds temporary relief with the reduced tariffs on Chinese imports, but the finite duration of the lower rates instigates an industry-wide mad dash to export merchandise to the US before the 90 days expire.
Understanding that the 30% tariff is not an ideal situation, companies managing toy manufacturing, high-end board games, and other goods are acting swiftly to fill orders and meet the demand for the holiday shopping season. Despite the tariff reduction, speakers such as Jay Foreman and Jonathan Silva remain wary of uncertainties in the future tariff landscape, prompting exploration of alternative manufacturing locations.
