- President Trump rolled back tariffs on most countries Wednesday, with the exception of China.
- The move is causing grocery stores to adapt and causing confusion among neighbors.
- Watch now to hear how one local grocery store is planning for a steep increase in cost from Chinese products.
BROADCAST TRANSCRIPT:
The American economy rebounded Wednesday as President Trump rolled back tariffs on most countries.
I'm Alberto Camargo in the Southeast Tallahassee neighborhood.
Learning how the market chaos affects us as consumers — from the prices at a locally owned grocery store to the neighbors who are reacting to the relaxing of tariffs.
Community Co-op Market felt the impact of international tariffs just like every big box and chain grocery store.
IT manager Gregory Terrell says the store was forced to raise prices on avocados, bell peppers, and coffee sourced from Mexico by 15-20%.
However, the co-op runs on a unique business model of prioritizing food and items sourced within a 400-mile radius.
That means that it has more stock that is less likely to be impacted by tariffs.
"Pretty much anything we can get local, we try to get it. Maybe in the long run they might be affected by prices like if the price of fertilizer goes up. But generally will not be as direct a price increase, at least we're not expecting."
I also spoke with neighbors like Barry Courtney about the reaction to the tariff news.
"Kind of surprised, but not surprised."
Courtney says the Trump lowering tariffs will provide relief, but it's hard to know how much.
"We didn't really get to experience what he was promising. What was he promising? I don't know. He says he knows what he's doing, I wish he would put it in black and white so the country and the rest of the world can relax."
A 125% tariffs on goods from China is in place.
Terrell says that will heavily impact store supplies like carryout trays, as well as many items in the supplements section.
"We've got word that those will be increasing in the next 30 to 90 days. Just how much yet, it's really hard to say. We might have to consider sourcing those completely not from China, just because of how much those prices are going to increase. There's no way we can price them competitively."
Terrell also says the 10% tariff cap for most countries will be a welcome relief to customers who have been vocal about price hikes in recent weeks.
In Southeast Tallahassee, Alberto Camargo, ABC27.
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