Trade regulations imposed by President Donald Trump’s administration, which levy a 25% tariff on $34 billion worth of Chinese imports to the United States quietly went into effect at midnight Friday. In response, Chinese authorities instituted equivalent tariffs on $34 billion worth of imported U.S. goods.
As The Daily Advertiser reports in an in-depth look at the tariff’s impact on the state, Louisiana’s reliance on trade makes it a unique microcosm of how the ongoing tariff battle will affect America.
However, Louisiana manufacturers that rely on steel and aluminum are already hurting even before the latest tariffs hit, with some prices increasing by 20% since February. And Louisiana boat builders are particularly concerned about the impact of tariffs. Still, the most widespread potential impact might be to the state’s vast agricultural industry.
“There’s as much pressure on ag as you can get right now,” says Louisiana Agriculture Commissioner Mike Strain.
Tariffs already instituted by Trump have triggered retaliation by the European Union Canada, Mexico and India are among the nations who have promised to follow suit this summer.
“We’re fighting a drought and cheap prices already, so any other setbacks put even more pressure on agriculture,” says Caddo Parish rancher Marty Wooldridge, who is also a leader in the Louisiana Farm Bureau Federation.
Most of Louisiana’s major crops, from rice to soybeans to cotton, rely on exports for 70% or more of their market. Sugar is the only crop that is largely protected because it’s consumed domestically.
But soybeans are particularly vulnerable and have been targeted by China.
“China wants to hit us where it hurts most and that’s soybeans,” says U.S. Rep. Ralph Abraham, R-Alto.
In spite of tariff induced anxieties, many farmers still support the policies. Read the full story.
