tariffs

By Karen Pearlman

Photo by Emma Palmer: San Diego County Building Industry Association CEO Lori Pfeiler; Lucas Coleman, Director of World Trade Center San Diego; and San Diego City Councilman Raul Campillo.

March 26, 2025 (San Diego) -- One week ahead of plans by President Donald Trump to put a 25 percent additional tariff on imports from Mexico and Canada, as well as a 10 percent tariff on imports from China, San Diego City Councilmember Raul Campillo and local business leaders  warned of severe economic consequences for the San Diego County region.

Trump said he is taking the action to hold Mexico, Canada and China accountable to their promise to halt illegal immigration and stopping fentanyl and other drugs from flowing into the United States.

Chair of the city of San Diego’s Economic Development & Intergovernmental Relations Committee, Campillo, who represents the Seventh Council District of San Diego (including the Navajo area neighborhoods of San Carlos, Allied Gardens, Del Cerro and Grantville) shared his concerns at a Wednesday afternoon press conference.

Joined by business leaders from different San Diego industries expecting to be affected by the tariffs, Campillo urged the federal administration to reverse course before the tariffs stand to damage local businesses and housing affordability.

The tariffs will impact industries that include manufacturing construction and healthcare, plus trade.

Campillo and business leaders are urging the current administration to pursue alternative solutions that would strengthen American industries without hurting consumers.

“San Diego thrives because of trade,” Campillo said.

“From our small businesses and manufacturers to our healthcare providers and construction industry, we depend on strong economic partnerships with Mexico, Canada and beyond. These tariffs threaten the economic stability of our region, putting jobs at risk, raising prices on everyday goods, and making it even harder for working families to afford to live here.”

Economic experts predict that the coming tariffs are expected to cost the average American household up to $2,000 more per year. San Diego families will be among the hardest hit because of an already high cost of living.

While trade accounts for 67 percent of Canada’s Gross Domestic Product, 73 percent of Mexico’s GDP and 37 percent of China’s GDP, it accounts for only 24 percent of U.S. GDP, according to The White House.

The White House reports that in 2023, the U.S. trade deficit in goods was the world’s largest at over $1 trillion.

Campillo said Trump is calling April 2 “Liberation Day,” and said, “let’s be honest -- there’s nothing liberating about raising prices on hardworking San Diegans and putting local jobs at risk.”

Campillo said the tariffs will threaten everything from groceries to housing to healthcare costs -- at a time when many families are already struggling.

He said the issue “is not about partisan politics -- it’s about protecting San Diego’s economy.”

“As an elected representative, I am standing with San Diego’s business community to say loud and clear -- this trade war is reckless, and it must stop,” Campillo said.

San Diego’s geographic position and close ties with Mexico make the region particularly vulnerable to economic instability caused by tariffs.

With $63 billion in imports and $33 billion in exports flowing through San Diego (2023 statistics), new trade restrictions could create severe economic disruptions.

San Diego Regional Chamber of Commerce Vice President of International and Public Affairs, Kenia Zamarripa said that tariffs “create unnecessary economic barriers that disrupt cross-border trade, increase costs for businesses and threaten jobs in our region.”

Zamarripa noted that San Diego thrives on seamless trade with Mexico – the region’s top trading partner.

“These tariffs will harm businesses of all sizes,” Zamarripa said.

One particular industry that is expected to be hit hard from the tariffs is housing construction. The cost of materials is expected to rise dramatically with the changes, potentially worsening San Diego’s housing crisis.

San Diego County Building Industry Association CEO Lori Pfeiler said that the new tariffs on America’s largest trading partners – Mexico, Canada and China -- are projected to raise the cost of imported construction materials by more than $3 billion, increasing the price of a new home by $7,500 to $10,000.

“That’s exactly the wrong approach, especially in San Diego, where we’re already facing a severe housing affordability crisis,” Pfeiler said. “We urge President Trump to roll back these tariffs to help build more housing, not less.”

Last November Trump said the tariff will remain in effect until “drugs, in particular fentanyl, and illegal aliens stop this invasion of our country.”

By Miriam Raftery

March 10, 2025 (San Diego) -- As President Donald Trump rolls out hefty tariffs on imported goods from America’s biggest trading partners—Mexico, Canada, and China,  American businesses and consumers are bearing the brunt, with higher prices on everything from steel and lumber to food and consumer products.

The action has drawn opposition even from the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, normally a staunch Republican ally. In a press release, the Chamber warns, “Tariffs on Canada and Mexico will have a real, devastating impact on thousands of small businesses across the nation — and on all Americans in the form of higher prices.”

While the U.S. Chamber shares concerns about border security and the scourge of fentanyl, unfair trading practices, tariffs on Canada and Mexico won't solve those problems and instead would lead to higher prices for Americans, the business organization states.

Chamber President and CEO Suzanne Clark, in her annual State of American Business, said pointedly. “"The bottom line is this: tariffs are a tax paid by Americans and their broad and indiscriminate use would stifle growth at the worst possible time.”  She stressed that to boost economic growth, America must participate in the global economy. That includes seizing opportunities to increase trade. 

Trump has justified the tariffs as intended to encourage production of goods made in America and ultimately boost the economy.

He signed an executive order on February 1^st to impose 25% tariffs on imports from Canada and Mexico, and 10% on Chinese imports. He did so by declaring a national emergency over undocumented immigration and drug trafficking. Trump later paused the Mexican and Canadian tariffs by 30 days and extended an exemption for the auto industry.

China meanwhile countered by announcing hefty new duty charges on numerous American goods ranging from cars and agricultural machinery to crude oil, coal and liquified natural gas.

Next up in mid-February, Trump announced a whopping 25% tariff on steel and aluminum imports,  metals that are used in many consumer products from vehicles to cookware. He also called for reciprocal tariffs on any goods that other countries tax,  a move that economists warn could create chaos for the global business community.

He’s also pledged to soon add tariffs on products from other countries, including a 25% tariff on some goods from our allies in Europe as well as tariffs on imports from India.

On March 4^th,  Trump doubled the tariff on Chinese imports to 20%.

After Trump doubled the Chinese tariffs, China imposed tariffs of up to 15% on numerous American farm exports and levied export controls on some two dozen American companies, Associated Press reports.

Canada slapped tariffs on over $100 billion worth of American goods over just 21 days. One  Canadian province removed all U.S.-made alcoholic beverages from store shelves, replacing them with Canadian liquor.  Canadian travelers have begun cancelling visits to the U.S., harming the American tourism industry.

Mexico’s President Claudia Sheibaum has said her country will also impose retaliatory tariffs but has not yet provided details. 

In early March, Trump postponed the 25% tariffs on some Mexican and Canadian imports for a month, crediting Mexico’s president with working to reduce drug smuggling and illegal border crossings, though the U.S. has also ramped up border security under the Trump administration.

The impacts have sent the stock market tumbling, fueling fears of a recession. Trump has said he doesn’t know if a recession can be avoided.

The effects of the Trump tariffs are also being felt locally.

Brent Schertzer, managing director of apartment developer Holland Partner Group, told the San Diego Union Tribune that tariffs on steel and other building materials could add millions of dollars to large construction projects. He said that material suppliers will have no choice but to charge more for steel, or risk going out of business.

Alan Gin, a professor of economics at the University of San Diego, told KUSI Fox 5 that some of the biggest cost hikes for Americans will include vehicles, oil and gas, electronics, and groceries — further fueling the inflation that have already caused hardships for many U.S. households.