Supreme Court ruling will not eliminate tariff uncertainty under Trump

Donald Trump believes that tariffs are a huge negotiating tool, but it is something that Democrats and some Republicans want to take away from him.

The case is now before the Supreme Court, with some believing this will finally settle the issue once and for all.

With Trump, that seems unlikely, at least to me.

The option

Right now, the small business owners who brought the suit are hoping for some relief from the tariffs.

There is no question in my mind that some of these tariffs have hurt small businesses who could not afford to absorb the tariff fees that Trump imposed.

Their options would be to buy from a US supplier, but that would often mean paying higher prices as well, if they can even find a US supplier to provide the products they need.

This is why these suits were brought against the government, but it poses a much larger question for business owners who are using and/or selling products not available from American manufacturers.

Volatile

Another question that has to be answered is that even if the Supreme Court rules in their favor, just how much of a difference will it make for these business owners?

Matt Lekstutis, director at Efficio, a global supply chain and procurement consultancy, explained, "Tariff uncertainty is here to stay, regardless of the ruling.”

He stated that a lot of businesses have made moves to diversify their supply chains, explaining, "They recognize that they're living in a world of complex volatility related to geopolitics ... and that these kinds of changes are going to continue regardless of how this ruling goes.”

Even if they win, this is something that could take considerable time to fix.

Unwinding

Let’s assume that the business owners win their suit and Trump has to reverse these tariffs.

That process is going to take considerable time to play out, but the other problem is that we all know prices still will not come down once businesses know they can get a certain price.

This is still going to impact consumers, who have already started to tighten their belts with rising prices, or, in some cases, have just left the country for a better financial situation.

I didn’t mind the tariffs as a negotiating tool, but the moment Trump decided they were going to be a source of income for the country, it changed everything, and not always for the better. The final result remains to be seen, but small businesses appear to be the ones paying the steepest price.