With the start of Small Business Month, the Chamber of Commerce is opposing the Trump administration’s trade policy, saying it has caused serious damage to major U.S. streets recently.
In a letter to Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent on Wednesday, Suzanne Clark, president and CEO of the Chamber of Commerce, demanded new tariffs from new tariffs to small American businesses that import goods from abroad. Clark wrote in the letter that small businesses have no profit or capital reserves that can increase tariffs.
“The Chamber of Commerce asked the government to take immediate action to save small businesses in the United States and avoid recession,” she wrote.
The Trump administration's tariff policy already exists Raises economists' expectations In a potential recession, although the United States is clear for the time being. International Monetary Funds in the Outlook of the World Economic explain It does not want the United States to enter a recession in 2025.
Clark added that if a trade deal is not reached, the tariffs could cause "irreparable harm" to the small business community. Currently, the tariff rate for products from most countries is 10%, while products from China face steep taxes of up to 145%.
President Trump said in an interview with Time magazine last week that the trade deal will be reached "in the next three to four weeks." Meanwhile, small businesses are forced to make difficult decisions about how to operate In uncertainty Due to the tariffs. A business owner who recently spoke to CBS MoneyWatch She said she was worried that her company might have to close the store forever.
According to the Wall Street Journal, small and medium-sized enterprises import $868 billion.
If the tariffs persist, small business owners can eventually transfer costs to customers at higher prices, such as large companies like Amazon, Temu and Shein Did it In recent weeks. But unlike large companies, any drop in consumer spending due to rising prices will result in strict profit margins for many small businesses. In fact, according to a recent TD bank survey, 43% of small business owners say their company will not survive if they fail to make money in three to four months of revenue.
"The Chamber of Commerce hears small business owners every day and they see their viability being harmed by recent tariff increases," Clark said in a letter to the Trump administration.
This is not the first bid for a commercial community to reduce tariffs. Ed Markey, a member of the U.S. Senate Small Business and Entrepreneurs Committee, wrote a letter to the Small Business Administration (SBA) last week calling on the Trump administration to grant tariff exemptions to the streets.
“These businesses simply don’t have financial mats to absorb price shocks or resources to lead to already complex supply channels changes. ” Markey wrote.