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Business news is buzzing with updates on tariffs, so I thought I’d share what our affiliates, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, the National Association of Manufacturers, and the National Retail Federation, are saying about this subject. I have lifted a few key points from each affiliate and invite you to look at the entirety of their statements. Our shared interests here are economic – jobs, productivity, sales, and growth for our members. Our sharing this is not a political statement of any kind, but rather an opportunity to inform you about the views expressed by other, like-minded, business organizations.
In a letter to the United States Trade Representative dated March 11, the National Retail Federation offered this: “Our trading partners must live up to their commitments under a variety of trade agreements. We must also continue to pursue strategies to ensure fair treatment for U.S. products in foreign markets.” The letter continues with this: “The administration must recognize, however, that supply chains are complex and global in nature. They are shaped by a variety of factors, including access to factory capacity, availability of a skilled workforce and raw materials, infrastructure and logistics considerations. Sourcing decisions can take months or years to implement, and supply chains are optimized for cost and efficiency.” “We are already seeing an impact with consumer confidence starting to drop as consumers become concerned about price increases from tariffs, and our members report that shoppers are reducing purchases of non-essential items over fear that higher prices will sap their spending power.” Read the full letter >
From a March 4th press release, the National Association of Manufacturers shared this: “The stakes couldn’t be higher for manufacturers right now. Many manufacturers are operating on thin margins, and the tariffs imposed today will strain their resources.” The statement goes on to add things the administration can do to alleviate the pressure on manufacturing. In the fourth bullet, they state, “Over the past year, we have averaged 500,000 open manufacturing jobs in America – well-paying, life-changing careers. Manufacturers are struggling to fill critical jobs. We need a real workforce strategy that ensures we have the talent to grow, compete, and lead.” Read more >
Finally, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce published this statement on March 3rd, and said, “The Chamber supports the administration’s efforts to advance pro-growth policies like fewer regulations and less taxation that will grow our economy and expand opportunity; and to fix serious problems like our broken border and stopping the flow of fentanyl in this country. We also want to work together to keep costs down, but tariffs will only raise prices and increase the economic pain being felt by everyday Americans across the country. We urge reconsideration of this policy and a swift end to these tariffs.” The U.S. Chamber also added this: “U.S. total goods traded with Canada were an estimated $762.1 billion in 2024, while goods traded with Mexico were an estimated $839.9 billion in 2024. Mexico and Canada are the two largest individual trading partners with the United States, supporting 13 million American jobs.” Read the full statement >
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