As the fight to keep toys tariff-free continues, players within the toy industry have been waiting for President Donald J. Trump to reverse or reduce the 145% tariff on China, which is currently devastating small- to mid-size businesses. Today, while speaking to reporters following the televised Cabinet meeting celebrating his 100th day in office, the President seemingly took a jab at the business.
“Somebody said, ‘Oh, the shelves are gonna be open.’ Well, maybe the children will have two dolls instead of 30 dolls, you know. And maybe the two dolls will cost a couple of bucks more than they would normally,” the President said while simultaneously showing empathy for China President Xi Jinping while lamenting the “trillion dollars” of “stuff, much of it we don’t need,” that is sourced from the country.
Video Source: WSJ via YouTube
The impact of tariffs on small businesses across the U.S. is being felt, and job losses and closures are already in progress.
Meanwhile, industry reps have been lobbying in Washington and encouraging companies to contact their local representatives and call upon lawmakers to intervene.
Following news that Illinois-based Learning Resources filed a lawsuit against the Trump Administration last week, additional suits have been filed by other small business owners seeking an end to the extreme tariff squeeze.
The Toy Book will continue to monitor and report on tariff-related news as we have it. Click here for our entire tariff archive.
