NEWS | NSBA Closely Monitoring Trump Tariff Announcements

NSBA continues to monitor tariff announcements from the White House, urging leaders from Washington to prioritize Small Business with these changes.

UPDATE, APRIL 09, 1:00 PM EDT | As the administration’s tariffs are being imposed, small businesses are feeling various impacts that run the gamut from positive to negative. NSBA will continue to monitor the situation and seek input from our members on how these tariffs and the resulting economic environment are impacting their businesses.

Below is a statement from NSBA VP of Public Affairs Molly Day.

“NSBA’s members are extremely diverse, and, as such, have varying opinions on the tariffs. According to NSBA’s Taxation Survey, which was fielded in December 2024 and January 2025, it’s about an equal split among small-business owners who say they’re directly or indirectly impacted and those who say they are not impacted. One-third of respondents to that survey said they use goods in their business that they directly source from outside the U.S., and among those, the vast majority identified China as a country they purchase from. More than half of respondents said they were concerned about increased tariffs, with one-in-three saying they are very concerned.”

If your firm is being impacted and you’d be willing to share your story publicly, please click here to complete our outreach form.

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APRIL 02 | President Trump announced new reciprocal tariffs on virtually every country in the world, with a universal baseline set at 10%.

Under Trump's orders, the reciprocal tariff on:

• Chinese imports will be 34 percent. Because these tariffs are “stackable” this reciprocal tariff brings the total rate on Chinese imports to 54 percent.

• EU imports will be 20 percent.

• South Korean imports will be 26 percent.

• Taiwan's imports will be 32 percent.

• Australian and UK imports will be 10 percent.

Canada and Mexico are exempt from reciprocal tariffs under the U.S. Mexico Canada Trade Agreement (USMCA), but, in a pervious announcement, Trump separately announced 25 percent tariffs on both countries.

Trump announced a 25 percent tariff on auto imports would be effective midnight Wednesday.

Trump also signed an order on Wednesday eliminating duty-free de minimis treatment for low-value imports from China, under which:

• Imported goods set through means other than the international postal network that are valued at or under $800 will now be subject to all applicable duties beginning on May 2, 2025; and

• All relevant postal items containing goods sent through the international postal network valued at or under $800 will be subject to a duty rate of either 30% of their value or $25 per item (increasing to $50 per item after June 1, 2025).

In response to the new tariffs, China urged the U.S. to lift the measures immediately and warned of countermeasures if the tariffs remain in place.

In a post on X, EU Trade Chief Marcos Sefcovic said that he will speak with his U.S. counterparts, adding that "unjustified tariffs inevitably backfire."

According to Sefcovic, the EU will act "in a calm, carefully phased, unified way" in calibrating its response while allowing time for negotiations with the U.S., further saying the EU "won't stand idly by" if both sides can't reach a "fair" deal.