A version of this article ran in the December issue of Bicycle Retailer & Industry News. This version has been updated with additional comments from Arnold Kamler.
(BRAIN) — Of the many expected changes when the new presidential administration takes over, the least speculative notion is increased tariffs on goods from China and perhaps from all other countries. For an industry that imports almost all its products, with more than 90% of bikes coming from China, that is guaranteed to have a major effect.
President-elect Donald Trump mentioned a lot of numbers on the campaign trail, but he generally has said he wants tariffs of up to 60% on Chinese goods and 10-20% on imports from other countries. Where we are now
Long-standing protective tariffs on imported bikes from most countries are generally 5.5% and 11% depending on wheel size; there is no protective tariff on e-bikes. The punitive Section 301 tariffs imposed on Chinese imports during the first Trump administration added 25% to the existing tariffs.
Many bike products were excluded from the tariffs at various times during the Trump and Joe Biden administrations, but most exclusions ended last summer .
So bikes from China are now hit with a 36% tariff and Chinese e-bikes get a 25% tariff. Short-term impact
Tariffs increase costs on the domestic industry. Importers pay them and as that cost gets passed through the system, it eventually gets to the retailer and the consumer."The impact of tariffs is more complex than it might appear in the […]
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