I am in the wholesale home improvement business and have years of direct experience importing products from overseas to the U.S., including tariffs, duties, drayage, etc.
More recently I have seen some of the recently imposed 20% tariffs on Chinese products on a group of lighting, flooring, and cabinet products. In most cases, at least for the time being, the increase in landed costs for us as a wholesale buyer have been averaging about 8-10%. Some a little higher, some a little lower. What that means is the sellers are eating a good portion of the tariff. FWIW, the tariff is paid by the "importer of record". So if Walmart (for example) buys product FOB (meaning they take possession at the port in Shanghai), Walmart pays the tariff. If they take possession in Long Beach CA, the company that shipped the goods pays the tariff. Regardless, Walmart can go to the manufacturer and ask/demand they lower their cost to share in the tariff pain.
Pointing out the obvious, higher margin/more profitable products like apparel leaves more room for eating tariff costs and minimizing final sales price increases. Lower margin products result in more pass through of tariff prices.
My guess would be that Toyota and dealers make more on the LCLC models than the 1958 so maybe any increases will be smaller in % on the more expensive models.
Oh by the way, at my company and many others, throughout the tariff increases from his first term, even when we took deposits, we noted that "if tariff rates increase, our final sales prices may change". Fortunately, while we sell some imported products, most are already in country when quoted. For many LC's that are "in transit", could mean anywhere from the middle of the Pacific to some highway in North Dakota. The former will cost 25% more for Toyota, the latter, not a dime.
All that, and all politics aside, the tariffs could disappear before 4/3 and be written off as bluster, or stick and slow sales and/or shift model/brand sell through. Selfishly, I am glad I bought mine last fall before all this nonsense started. BMW dealers were told this week that BMW will not raise their costs through May, thereafter the dealers don't know. Each other brand will declare to their dealers how their costs will be impacted. over time. I'd be pretty anxious if I were a car dealer.
And yeah, our car insurance will go up because of this, just like home insurance has as lumber and roofing materials have become more expensive over the last few years.
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This hits deep. As a kid born in the early 80s in small town America, I wholly agree.
