US IMPORTERS, CONSUMERS BEAR BULK OF NEW TARIFFS IN 2025: STUDY

NEW YORK, Feb 13 (Bernama-Xinhua) — Tariffs imposed on imported goods by the Trump administration in 2025 fell mostly on United States importers and consumers rather than overseas exporters, showed a study published on the website of the Federal Reserve Bank of New York (New York Fed) on Thursday, reported Xinhua.

"We find that nearly 90 per cent of the tariffs' economic burden fell on US firms and consumers," said the paper authored by staff economists at the New York Fed and another economist at Columbia University.

As much as 94 per cent of new tariffs in the first eight months of 2025 was absorbed by US importers and consumers, according to the study.

The share of tariffs borne by US importers and consumers stood at 92 per cent from September to October and 86 per cent in November.

"These findings are consistent with two other studies that report high pass-through of tariffs to US import prices," said the paper.

US average tariff rate on imported goods increased from 2.6 per cent at the beginning of 2025 to 13 per cent by the end of 2025, according to the study.

Moreover, the results of the study imply that US import prices for goods subject to the average tariff increased by 11 per cent more than those for goods not subject to tariffs.

The US Department of Homeland Security collected US$287 billion in customs duties, taxes and fees in 2025, up 192 per cent compared with the prior year, according to the US Department of Treasury.

In particular, the US Customs and Border Protection collected more than US$200 billion in tariffs between Jan 20 and Dec 15, 2025, enabled by more than 40 executive orders put in place by the Trump administration.

What has long been known is that US consumers and businesses pay the costs of Donald Trump's tariffs, noted Bruce Klingner, a senior fellow at the Mansfield Foundation, while he posted a report on the study.

-- BERNAMA-XINHUA