The game against Trump tariffs has made our imports soar

U.S. imports hit the highest record in December's record as businesses competed against President Donald Trump's tariff threat to secure tax rates on foreign-made toys, cell phones and computers.

The value of goods brought to the U.S. has jumped 4% since November, the highest shipment since its founding record in 1992, the Commerce Department said Wednesday.

The rise has also led to the largest trade deficit or gap between exports and imports in the past two years.

The future of global trade remains uncertain due to Trump's tariff plan – he said he wants to see taxes imposed on all foreign goods.

This week, the president hit 10% tariffs on goods from China, but faced widespread public alarms, 25% of goods were suspended from goods from Canada and Mexico.

Without pause, his orders will increase the cost of goods for the top three trading partners of the United States, accounting for more than 40% of the 3ttn goods imported from the United States.

Trump said the tariffs would encourage companies to make their products in the United States and repeatedly worry about the size of the trade deficit.

However, these moves raise concerns about the impact of the U.S. economy, as businesses deal with trade uncertainty by insisting on investing or transferring new costs to their customers.

The tariffs have also sparked political tensions, including retaliation from China, which responded to Trump's tariffs on U.S. goods and Google's antitrust investigations, among other measures.

Bloomberg reported Wednesday that the country's antitrust regulator is preparing to investigate Apple's policies and app store fees, thus reaching the company's stock.

Trump's moves – including tax-free treatment for ordering parcels worth less than $800 – were a major “shock” for some companies, such as Shein and Temu, as they undermine the ability to offer super low prices. Mark Williams, chief Chinese economist.

But he said he believes China generally believes that the impact of Trump's tariffs will not be too much damaged.

“For the broader Chinese economy, this is absolutely manageable,” he said.

China ranked the largest in December's commodity deficit, sending US$25.3 billion in price.

The EU is the target of Trump's tariff threat, with the second gap.

By comparison, the U.S. and the UK have a surplus of $2.3 billion.

Overall, the U.S. trade deficit, including services, grew 17% last year to $918.4 billion, as imports are faster than exports.

The Ministry of Commerce said that the trade deficit for goods and services was $98.4 billion last December, the highest since March 2022.