President Donald Trump has vowed to impose tariffs against Mexico starting next week. The country is America’s biggest trading partner, and Trump wants to ratchet up economic pressure on the Mexican government so that it does more to slow the flow of migrants coming across the southern U.S. border. But some economists say it’s Texans who will face the most serious consequences, including those in the automotive industry.
Tom Fullerton, professor of economics and finance at the University of Texas at El Paso, says while Trump has proposed a maximum 25% tariff by October, the effective tax that businesses would actually pay by then could be as much as 40%.
“Parts and equipment cross the border so many times before the final product is manufactured,” Fullerton says. “And so, 100,000 jobs [lost] in Texas, that might be … the best case scenario.”
What you’ll hear in this segment:
– How Texas businesses could end up paying nearly $30 billion in tariffs on imported Mexican goods
– How prominent Texas Republicans are speaking out against the tariffs
– How the tariffs could ultimately affect a large number of jobs in Texas
Written by Caroline Covington.
