- 'Little Gregory' murder haunts France 40 years on
- Americans get their belief back as Pochettino makes his mark
- Vietnam, China to boost economic, defence cooperation
- Tariffs, tax cuts, energy: What is in Trump's economic plan?
- Amazon wants to be everything to everyone
- US firms brace for more tariffs as election approaches
- Winning start for Poch's American adventure
- Morocco's tribeswomen see facial tattoo tradition fade
- Centre-left set to win as pro-Ukraine Lithuania votes
- Colombia guerilla group urges delegations not to attend COP16 in Cali
- Pakistan frets over security ahead of SCO summit
- 40 nations contributing to UN Lebanon peacekeeping force condemn 'attacks'
- Eight dead as heavy rain thrashes Brazil after long drought
- Jewish school in Canada hit by gunfire for second time
- Morocco crush Central African Republic, Guirassy scores hat-trick
- Dupont scores quickfire hat-trick on Toulouse Top 14 return
- Ronaldo scores in Portugal's Nations League win as Spain sink Denmark
- Interim boss Carsley has not applied for England job
- Mets hurler Senga ready to take on Dodgers in game one of NL Championship Series
- Ronaldo on target again as Portugal defeat Poland in Nations League
- Guardians rip Tigers 7-3 to advance in MLB playoffs
- AFP, BBC win top French war reporting awards
- Carsley goes back to basics as humbled England face Finland
- Alex Salmond: the man who took Scotland to the brink of independence
- Scotland's former leader Alex Salmond dies aged 69: party
- UN warns of catastrophe as Israel fights a two-front war
- Croatia extend Scotland's losing streak
- 'Very challenging': Israel faces Hezbollah in tricky terrain
- Farrell begins to feel at home as Racing 92 beat Toulon
- South Africa boost T20 World Cup semi-final hopes with Bangladesh win
- Djokovic to face Sinner in Shanghai final with 100th title in sight
- UN peacekeepers to remain in Lebanon: spokesman
- Pro-Conquest film fuels debate in Mexico over colonial legacy
- Samson ton powers India to record 297-6 in Bangladesh T20
- New Zealand enjoy perfect start to America's Cup defence over Britain
- Pogacar emulates icon Coppi with fourth straight Il Lombardia triumph
- New Zealand crush Ineos Britannia in America's Cup opener
- Djokovic to face Sinner in blockbuster Shanghai Masters final
- Sri Lanka seeks to match success in W.Indies T20s
- China-EU EV tariff talks in Brussels end with 'major differences': Beijing
- Sabalenka downs Gauff in three sets to reach Wuhan final
- Israel warns south Lebanon residents to 'not return'
- Sinner tames Machac to reach Shanghai Masters final
- Buried Nazi past haunts Athens on liberation anniversary
- Harris to release medical report confirming fitness for presidency: campaign
- Nobel prize a timely reminder, Hiroshima locals say
- Hezbollah fires at Israel as wars rage on Yom Kippur
- Analysts warn more detail needed on new China economic measures
- China offers $325 bn in fiscal stimulus for ailing economy
- Dodgers drop Padres 2-0 to advance in MLB playoffs
US firms brace for more tariffs as election approaches
From holding back investments to considering moving abroad, businesses in the United States are bracing for more economic turbulence as the presidential campaign kicks into high gear -- with fresh tariffs rolled out and promises of more.
Republican candidate Donald Trump has proposed at least a 10 percent tariff on imports and up to 60 percent on Chinese goods, intensifying levies he previously imposed on Beijing and others.
Democratic nominee Kamala Harris, meanwhile, serves an administration that largely maintained Trump's tariffs and last month finalized further hikes on $18 billion of Chinese products.
For Robert Actis, whose manufacturing business has been caught in the tariff maelstrom, the future has looked "clouded" over the past five years.
Under Trump, he faced tariffs on steel and aluminum and has struggled to find alternative suppliers for raw materials not produced in the country.
Fresh measures on the materials by the Biden-Harris administration have added to his woes.
"I would be very happy to buy from a US producer," said Actis, who imports wires to make stucco netting used in construction, "but there's no one willing to do it."
He has previously been granted tariff exemptions, but the annual applications are not always successful.
Additional costs are gradually being passed to homebuilders, he said.
- Millions in costs -
US tariffs weigh on many industries. The American Apparel & Footwear Association (AAFA) estimates retail prices have risen five percent to 10 percent annually since 2020.
"Initially, our members tried to eat some of those costs by eating into their profits," said Nate Herman, AAFA's senior vice president for policy.
But this has been tough.
It is unclear that tariffs on China have returned production to the United States, as Trump argues, and at least 14 US textile mills have closed in recent years, Herman told AFP.
Products like certain acrylic sweaters are not produced domestically either, requiring new machinery and trained workers, he said.
"The average age in domestic factories has gone into the 50s because we just can't find workers willing to work in those factories," Herman added.
"For a small company like us, it's millions of dollars" in added costs, said Ray Sharrah, CEO of lighting products maker Streamlight.
"We pay for it, our exporter helps, and ultimately the consumer (pays)," he said. "This is the problem with any tariff."
- 'Dampening effect' -
Uncertainty looms as November's election approaches, but businesses prefer predicability.
A September survey involving the Richmond and Atlanta Federal Reserve banks found that 30 percent of firms reported postponing, scaling down, delaying or canceling investment plans due to election uncertainty.
"It stops you from action. It stops you from investment, and it just generally creates a dampening effect on all economic development," Sharrah said.
With business partners, he has been trying to bring production of a major component back into the country -- but to no avail.
"When we spend time reshuffling the supply chain deck, that's time we don't spend growing our business," he said.
AAFA's Herman added that companies have been trying to find alternative sources but "with mixed results."
He believes businesses will ramp up imports ahead of expected tariff hikes, as happened in 2018 when Trump engaged in a trade war with Beijing.
"But again, if there's a global tariff imposed, then where do you go?" Herman said.
- Rhetoric or reality? -
Businesses expect tariffs to stay no matter who wins the election.
"If anything, it's probably going to go up," Actis said, adding that he has considered moving his business abroad.
But he believes it is hard to predict what a candidate like Trump might do, saying, "A lot of it is bombast."
Will Thomas of Colonial Metal Products said there is little businesses can do besides importing from diverse sources.
"It seems that the presidential candidates want to say things that invoke emotion," he said.
"However, if all these products aren't there, and you keep increasing the cost of the products, what happens? The costs go up, it's inflation."
At auto accessories importer Trim Illusion, President Colby McLaughlin is considering scaling up his business to boost margins.
As a voter, he is torn between perspectives as a business owner and a citizen.
"I'm not against a tariff, as long as there is a plan or support to help these companies bring the manufacturing back," he said.
"For me, that's the piece that I haven't heard."
H.Silva--PC