Trump tariffs on kitchen cabinets and timber come into force

New U.S. tariffs on imported kitchen cabinets, vanities, lumber and some upholstered furniture have taken effect.

Under a proclamation signed by President Donald Trump last month, a 10% tariff on softwood lumber and timber imports will apply starting Tuesday.

A 25% customs duty will also apply to imported kitchen cabinets and vanities – rising to 50% on January 1 – and a 25% duty on wooden upholstered furniture will increase to 30%, unless new trade deals are reached.

Trump has cited the need to protect U.S. manufacturers and national security concerns, but some in the industry fear the tariffs will increase housing costs and cause customers to postpone home renovations.

Tariffs are taxes on imported products, typically charged as a percentage of a product’s value and paid to the U.S. government by the companies importing the products.

These companies may pass on some or all of the additional costs to their customers, which in this case means ordinary Americans and other American businesses.

The president’s tariff policy has been a key plank of his second term in the White House.

Trump has already imposed sector-specific tariffs on steel, copper, aluminum, cars and their components.

The additional 10% tariff on softwood lumber means the product from Canada – the world’s second-largest producer and a major supplier to the United States – is now priced at more than 45%.

Combined countervailing and anti-dumping duties of 35.16% are already imposed on most Canadian producers as part of a decades-long dispute over the product between the two countries.

Under existing trade agreements with the United States, duties on timber products from the United Kingdom will not exceed 10%, while those from the European Union and Japan will not exceed 15%.

The White House says Trump’s tariffs were implemented “to protect against threats” to U.S. national security and to “strengthen the manufacturing sector.”

But the National Association of Home Builders said in a statement in late September that the new levies could increase housing costs.

“These new rates will create additional headwinds for an already struggling housing market by further increasing construction and renovation costs,” said President Buddy Hughes.

According to Cristina Fernández, managing director of Telsey Advisory Group and senior retail analyst, retailers will have no choice but to increase prices on imported products.

Speaking to the BBC’s US partner CBS News last month, she said retailers would try not to raise prices too much ahead of the holiday season, but “they can’t absorb 30% tariffs on top of other tariffs already in place”.

“They will have to pass on the prices, probably in the form of a double-digit price increase,” she added.

Last month, Swedish furniture giant Ikea said tariffs on furniture imports were making business “more difficult”.

“Tariffs impact our business in the same way they impact other businesses, and we are monitoring developments closely,” the company said.