CBS News
Retailers tell consumers that Trump tariffs are a reason to shop now
Some retailers are using President-elect Donald Trump’s proposed tariffs to urge consumers to shop now, suggesting if the import duties go into effect next year, a range of goods could cost Americans a lot more money.
It’s yet another sales tactic some companies are implementing, in addition to the traditional Black Friday discounts, to get consumers to spend as much as possible ahead of the holidays.
On Monday, Trump pledged to add a 25% tariff on all products from Mexico and Canada, along with a 10% levy on Chinese goods, in an effort to crack down on illegal immigration and illicit drugs flowing into the U.S. The proposed taxes are in addition to earlier campaign promises to impose a baseline 10% tariff on all U.S. imports and a 60% tariff on goods shipped from China, once he takes office.
While prices on variety of goods, ranging from shoes to vacuum cleaners, could indeed rise if Trump moves forward with his tariff proposals, some retail experts say that retailers may be seeking to tap into people’s universal fear of missing out on a limited-time offer or experience. But the tactic could also rub some shoppers the wrong way, experts caution.
“It’s a double-edged sword. I think it it might get people interested in buying things, but it could also split consumers if they think everyone’s going to bring their prices up,” said Neil Saunders, managing director and retail analyst at GlobalData. “The other problem is it’s slightly political as well, so some retailers would want to steer clear of it.”
While Trump has said he plans to move forward with tariffs, some economists have pointed out that the next administration may simply use the duties as a bargaining chip, which could enable the White House to strike new trade deals, for instance. Even though the tariffs are far from certain, a number of companies have explicitly said the levies floated by Trump would inevitably force them to raise prices for consumers.
“Lock in our current prices”
For example, filtered shower head maker Jolie recently said it would have pass along some of the anticipated costs from the tariffs to consumers. In a recent email to customers, the company said that tariffs on goods made outside of the U.S. would “mean we would need to raise our prices.”
“If you’re considering buying a Jolie, now is a great time to lock in our current prices,” the company added. Currently, a shower head with a filter subscription costs $148. The company announced a “potential” new price of $178.
Consumer electronics retailer Best Buy CEO Corie Barry similarly said on the its latest earnings call that the goods it sells could become more expensive under Trump’s proposed tariffs.
Any added costs on U.S. imports from the three counties “will be shared by our customers,” Barry told investors on Nov. 26, noting that “there’s very little in [the] consumer electronics space that is not imported.”
“Pre-tariff” sales
And on Facebook, a Dallas, Texas-based furniture store called Finally Home Furnishings, announced a “pre-tariff sale” that runs until January, earlier this month.
“Get a deal while you still can,” the retailer said.
Finally Home Furnishings did not immediately respond to CBS MoneyWatch’s request for comment, or indicate how much it expects it may need to hike prices if new tariffs go into effect.
Etsy seller Buzzy Park, who sells handmade bamboo picture frames, also advertised a “pre-tariff ” sale on his entire inventory, starting this month and lasting until any new tariffs go into effect. “Hurry and get them at their current prices,” Park wrote in a social media post.
While prices on variety of goods, ranging from shoes to vacuum cleaners, could indeed rise, some marketing and retail experts say that even sellers who don’t expect to face added costs could be using potential tariffs as an excuse to charge customers more.
“If consumers panic about things getting more expensive, they are playing right into the hands of companies around the country to use it as an excuse to raise prices, even when it’s not necessary,” said Scott Lincicome, a trade expert at the Cato Institute, a public policy research group. “
He added, It’s a pretty handy excuse when you are in a constant battle with consumers on price.”
Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau will meet with President-elect Donald Trump Friday at Trump’s Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida, Canada’s CBC News reported. The meeting comes in the wake of Trump’s threat to impose tariffs on goods coming from Canada.
Trudeau will dine with Trump at Mar-a-largo Friday night, according to senior sources who spoke to CBC News on condition they not be named due to the sensitivity of the trip. The sources said the meeting was pushed for by Canadian officials, the Canadian broadcaster said.
Trudeau’s plane landed at Palm Beach International Airport at about 5:30 p.m. local time.
The meeting comes after Trudeau earlier Friday cautioned that if Trump follows through on this threat to impose sweeping tariffs on Canadian products, he would be raising prices for Americans and hurting American businesses.
Trump has threatened to impose tariffs on products from Canada and Mexico if the countries don’t stop what he called the flow of drugs and migrants across southern and northern borders. He said he would impose a 25% tax on all products entering the U.S. from Canada and Mexico as one of his first executive orders.
“It is important to understand that Donald Trump, when he makes statements like that, he plans on carrying them out. There’s no question about it,” Trudeau said to reporters in Prince Edward Island in Atlantic Canada.
“Our responsibility is to point out that he would not just be harming Canadians, who work so well with the United States, but he would actually be raising prices for American citizens as well and hurting American industry and business,” he added.
Trudeau said Trump got elected because he promised to bring down the cost of groceries but now he’s talking about adding 25% to the cost of all kinds of products, including potatoes from Prince Edward Island.
Those tariffs could essentially blow up the North American trade pact that Trump’s team negotiated during his first term. Trudeau noted they were able to successfully re-negotiate the deal, which he calls a “win-win” for both countries.
“We can work together as we did previously,” Trudeau said.
Trump made the tariff threat Monday while railing against an influx of illegal migrants, even though the numbers at the Canadian border pale in comparison to the southern border.
The U.S. Border Patrol made 56,530 arrests at the Mexican border in October alone — and 23,721 arrests at the Canadian one between October 2023 and September 2024.
Trump also railed about fentanyl from Mexico and Canada, even though seizures from the Canadian border are few in comparison to the Mexican border. U.S. customs agents seized 43 pounds of fentanyl at the Canadian border last fiscal year, compared with 21,100 pounds at the Mexican border.
Canadian officials say lumping Canada in with Mexico is unfair but they are ready to make new investments in border security.
“We’re going to work together to meet some of the concerns,” Trudeau said. “But ultimately it is through lots of real constructive conversations with President Trump that I am going to have, that will keep us moving forward on the right track for all Canadians.”
Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum said Thursday she is confident that a tariff war with the United States will be averted. Trump posted on social media that he had spoken with her and she had agreed to stop unauthorized migration across the border into the United States.
When Trump imposed higher tariffs during his first term in office, other countries responded with retaliatory tariffs of their own. Canada, for instance, announced billions of new duties in 2018 against the U.S. in a tit-for-tat response to new taxes on Canadian steel and aluminum.
Canada is the top export destination for 36 U.S. states. Nearly $2.7 billion worth of goods and services cross the border each day.
Canada is also the largest foreign supplier of steel, aluminum and uranium to the U.S. and has 34 critical minerals and metals that the Pentagon is eager for and investing in for national security.
Chef, restaurateur and TV cooking judge Tom Colicchio offers “Sunday Morning” viewers a recipe from his latest book, “Why I Cook,” what he calls Possibly the Best Grilled Cheese You’ll Ever Have. He writes:
“Like many other dads, I make a lot of grilled cheese sandwiches for the kids. This one started as a way to utilize the mozzarella from Lombardi’s Love Lane Market, an Italian deli in Mattituck that makes the world’s best fresh mozz. Paired with ‘nduja, a peppery spreadable Italian sausage, the grilled cheese essentially becomes a spicy pizza. It’s decadent for sure, but the spice of the ‘nduja cuts through the richness of the mozzarella. As always, but here especially, low and slow heat is important. It’s the key to developing a nice crust on the bread, while also melting the cheese.”
From “Why I Cook” by Tom Colicchio, courtesy of Artisan
Possibly the Best Grilled Cheese You’ll Ever Have
By Tom Colicchio
Makes 2 sandwiches
Ingredients:
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
½ pound fresh mozzarella cheese, thinly sliced
4 thick slices peasant bread (see Note)
3 ounces soft ‘nduja
4 tablespoons unsalted butter
Instructions:
Pour 1 tablespoon of the olive oil into a heavy-bottomed skillet and set over medium-low heat.
Layer the mozzarella slices on 2 pieces of the bread. Layer the ‘nduja on the other 2 slices of bread.
Add 1 slice of mozzarella bread and 1 slice of ‘nduja bread open face to the pan. Add 2 tablespoons butter to the pan. Cook for 2 minutes. Cover the pan and cook (still open face) for another 2 to 3 minutes, until the cheese is melted. Remove the hot melted slices from the pan and immediately flip them together to make a sandwich. Slice the sandwich in half crosswise.
Wipe the pan clean and repeat the process to make the second sandwich and serve immediately.
Note:
Any bread will do, but I prefer one without a heavy sourdough flavor.
From “Why I Cook” by Tom Colicchio. Copyright © 2024 by Tom Colicchio. Reprinted by permission of Artisan, an imprint of Hachette Book Group. All rights reserved.
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Chef, restaurateur and TV cooking judge Tom Colicchio offers “Sunday Morning” viewers a recipe from his latest book, “Why I Cook,” for Skirt Steak with Shishitos, Hot Cherry Peppers, and Onions. He writes:
“This recipe started as a salad for our babysitter Tenzin, who is a vegetarian. I, clearly, am not. But the flavors of that salad — sweetness, acid, spice, saltiness, and umami — work so well together I knew they would go perfectly with steak. For the record, this combo of hot cherry peppers, shishitos, and red onions, which touches every flavor receptor, works just as well with grilled pork, chicken, or fish. Sometimes I’ll add raw cucumbers at the end; sometimes I’ll cut the onions into rings and grill them. And if you have leftover steak, just slice it, toss it briefly on the grill, and use.”
From “Why I Cook” by Tom Colicchio, courtesy of Artisan
Skirt Steak with Shishitos, Hot Cherry Peppers, and Onions
By Tom Colicchio
Serves 4
Ingredients:
1¼ pounds skirt steak
6 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
2 red onions, cut into 1-inch wedges
Kosher salt
½ pound shishito peppers
Freshly cracked black pepper
1 tablespoon fish sauce
1 tablespoon chili crisp
¼ cup sliced pickled hot cherry peppers
½ cup fresh cilantro leaves
½ cup fresh mint leaves
½ cup fresh parsley leaves
½ cup fresh basil leaves
2 or 3 scallions, sliced
Juice of 1 lime
Instructions:
Allow the steak to come to room temperature.
Warm a large heavy-bottomed sauté pan over medium heat. Add enough oil to coat the bottom of the pan, about 2 tablespoons. Place the onions in the pan, season with salt, and cook until browned and soft, 6 to 7 minutes. Transfer the onions from the pan to a large bowl.
To the same pan, add 1 tablespoon oil and the shishito peppers. Season with salt and cook, turning occasionally, until the shishitos are charred and blistered, 6 to 8 minutes.
Transfer the shishitos to the bowl with the onions. Toss the onions and peppers with 1 tablespoon olive oil and salt and black pepper to taste. Add the fish sauce, chili crisp, and pickled peppers. Taste and adjust the amount of chili crisp and pickled peppers based on how much spice you like. Add the fresh cilantro, mint, parsley, and basil and mix.
Dry the skirt steak with paper towels and cut crosswise into pieces that will fit in the same heavy-bottomed sauté pan. Generously season the steak with salt and black pepper.
Heat the pan over medium-high heat. Pour in enough oil to coat the bottom, about 2 tablespoons. When the oil shimmers, add the steak to the pan (in batches, if needed, so as not to overcrowd the pan) and sear for 2 to 3 minutes per side for medium-rare.
Transfer the steak to a cutting board and allow to rest for 5 minutes before slicing against the grain and tossing with the onion/shishito/herb mixture. Spoon any accumulated juices over the steak, top with the scallions and lime juice, and enjoy.
From “Why I Cook” by Tom Colicchio. Copyright © 2024 by Tom Colicchio. Reprinted by permission of Artisan, an imprint of Hachette Book Group. All rights reserved.
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