Small businesses in the United States are expected to face an estimated $202 billion in annual tariffs due to recently announced changes in trade policy. According to the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, this estimate is based on data from the Census Bureau, which shows that more than 236,000 small business importers—defined as companies with fewer than 500 employees—brought in over $868 billion worth of goods during 2023.
The Chamber calculated the projected tariff burden by applying new country-level tariffs, announced on July 31, to last year’s level of small business imports. The organization notes that these figures may not fully capture all costs imposed on small businesses.
“For example, if a small business is importing an item made with steel from Europe, it will face a 50% tariff on the steel’s value share — not just a 15% tariff. These estimates also don’t capture the elevated 25% tariffs on autos from Canada and Mexico or the 25% tariff on auto parts from many countries. In other instances, this may overstate the tariff if they are importing an item, like semiconductors, currently excluded from tariffs,” said Neil Bradley of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce.
The Chamber also provides resources for businesses to estimate their import costs based on country of origin.
Small businesses play a significant role in U.S. international trade and could be affected by higher import costs due to these new tariffs (https://www.census.gov/foreign-trade/statistics/highlights/top/top2312yr.html).
