Tariffs Threaten To End Era Of Cheap Clothing — Apparel Industry Faces Major Price Shock Under Trump Policy

The apparel industry is bracing for a significant impact as tariffs are set to increase the cost of clothing, potentially ending the era of cheap garments.

What Happened: The Trump administration’s tariffs are poised to hit the clothing industry particularly hard, reported Marketplace on Monday. The majority of clothes and shoes purchased in the U.S. are imported, with a significant portion coming from Southeast Asian countries. These imports are soon to be subject to tariffs exceeding 30%.

When President Trump increased taxes on imports from China during his first term, many apparel companies shifted their operations, particularly to Vietnam, as noted by David Swartz of Morningstar. However, with the new tariffs targeting all U.S. trading partners, companies have no place to escape. “They cannot move production to other countries to avoid a tariff in one country in any realistic time frame,” Swartz said.

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Stephen Lamar, head of the American Apparel and Footwear Association, ruled out the possibility of moving garment manufacturing to the U.S., citing a lack of labor, skill sets, infrastructure, and capabilities to scale up production. Denise Green at Cornell University added, “We’re not going to be able to buy clothing as inexpensively as we have in the past.”

Why It Matters: The new tariffs, part of President Trump’s strategy to stimulate domestic investment by companies seeking to evade import taxes, have sparked a significant market reaction, escalating U.S. duties to their highest level in over a century.

The tariffs have stirred global markets, leading to a loss of $2 trillion on Wall Street. Over 50 countries, targets of reciprocal tariffs by the U.S., have since reached out to begin negotiations on the high import tariffs, according to the White House.

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Disclaimer: This content was partially produced with the help of AI tools and was reviewed and published by Benzinga editors.