How pre-tariff spending could affect household budgets down the line
06:41 Share

Did you know that the average professional spends up to five hours a week making slide decks? What if you could create professional presentations, websites, social media posts, and more in minutes instead of hours? Gamma takes your messy notes or outline and instantly transforms it into stunning content that's ready to share. No coding or design skills required. Start for free at gamma.app. That's G-A-M-M-A dot app.

Marketplace listeners get one month of Gamma Pro free with promo code marketplace. You have ideas. Gamma brings them to life. Trading shouldn't have barriers. When Robinhood started, it was built to make trading more accessible. Now, Robinhood offers more sophisticated trading tools. Experience the future of trading on Robinhood Legend, the all-new desktop platform that harnesses intuitive design to deliver a seamless experience for traders. Free to use with a Robinhood account.

The future of trading is fast, powerful, and precise. Experience it now on Robinhood Legend. Sign up today. Investing is risky. Robinhood Financial LLC member SIPC is a registered broker-dealer. Other fees may apply. On again, off again, tariffs change yet again.

From Marketplace, I'm Sabri Beneshour, in for David Brancaccio. The U.S. and China have agreed to temporarily cut tariffs on each other's exports for 90 days while they figure out a trade deal. At stake is over $500 billion worth of goods traded between the two countries. U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Besson said neither side wants to decouple. U.S. market futures surged after the announcement. So did Chinese markets. Marketplace's China correspondent Jennifer Pak has more from Shanghai.

The move is in line with expectations of exporters and consumers in both the U.S. and China, says the Chinese Commerce Ministry. Under the agreement, U.S. tariffs on most Chinese exports will be cut from 145% to 30%, plus any pre-existing duties.

while China will drop tariffs on all American goods from 125% to 10%. This is on top of the 10% to 15% retaliatory duties on certain American exports, such as coal and agricultural products. But a 90-day tariff reprieve still doesn't make it easy for businesses to plan. It takes weeks to manufacture products and even longer to ship goods.

Once the products arrive on each country's shores and when tariffs are collected, businesses worry, would the final tariffs be the same as originally budgeted? In April, Chinese exports to the U.S. dropped by 21% year-on-year, while American exports to China dropped 14%. The tariff reduction will start on Wednesday as trade talks continue. In Shanghai, I'm Jennifer Pak for Marketplace.

And for months before this announcement, businesses tried to stockpile goods before tariffs hit. So did many consumers. From Apple to Audi, consumer goods companies have been reporting rising sales. Marketplace's Kristen Schwab has more on how this rush to spend early affects household budgets down the line.

David Swartz has been seeing quite a few car commercials promoting pre-tariff pricing. Even like local dealers were clearly encouraging people to buy now and not wait till later.

Swartz, a senior analyst at Morningstar, says companies in all kinds of sectors are warning that prices will go up and inventory will go down. And that triggers a scarcity mindset in consumers, says Dan Blanchard at the Yale Center for Customer Insights. This idea that you need to get it before it's gone. Especially for big ticket items like electronics and appliances. Blanchard says if you're planning to buy something in the next few months, it does make sense to buy it now. But don't get too caught up

In stocking up, it's easier for consumers to disproportionately focus on immediate costs and savings than it is to think about the long-term effects on their wallets. Throwing off the budget or going into credit card debt to save now could cost more down the line, especially if there's an economic downturn. I'm Kristen Schwab for Marketplace.

President Donald Trump announced Sunday that he plans to sign an executive order later today that would aim to bring down the cost of some medications in the U.S. by tying them to prices charged in other countries. Trump tried something similar in his first term, but the effort was blocked by federal courts. This Marketplace podcast is supported by GoFundMe Pro. Over the past 15 years, the fundraising platform Classy has helped nonprofits reach more supporters and raise more money.

Now Classy is becoming GoFundMe Pro, combining best-in-class nonprofit tools with the world's largest community for good and tapping into GoFundMe's power, scale, and community of 190 million. From launching campaigns to rallying supporters, GoFundMe makes it easier than ever to inspire giving. Visit pro.gofundme.com to

up-level your nonprofit today. That's pro.gofundme.com. Now at Verizon, we're locking in low prices for three years guaranteed on MyPlan. And you can get a single line for just $45 a month when you switch and bring your phone. That's our best price ever on unlimited welcome with auto pay plus taxes and fees guaranteed for three years.

Because at Verizon, we got you. Visit your local Chicago Verizon store today. $20 monthly promo credits apply to over 36 months with a new line on unlimited welcome. In times of congestion, unlimited 5G and 4G LTE may be temporarily slower than other traffic. Domestic data roaming at 2G speeds. Price guarantee applies to then current base monthly rate. Additional terms and conditions apply.

Federal government budget cuts under the Department of Government Efficiency have been deep and sweeping, as we have reported. And this week, we get a look at how cuts are playing out in Indian country. A new survey from the National Center for American Indian Enterprise Development details how policies in the first few months of the Trump administration are affecting tribal economies. Marketplace's Savannah Peters has more.

The National Center has been working to help more tribally run businesses reach global markets. Under the Biden administration, it got some funding to support that work. We were on a five-year grant for our export center. We were on year four. Year five was just canceled. And without really explanation. Chris

Chris James is president and CEO of the National Center. He says that cancellation came after the Trump administration slashed staff at the Minority Business Development Agency. We knew that might have been coming down the pipeline, but actually getting the notifications is, you know, it was very real. He says he's hearing from tribal leaders all around the country with similar experiences.

In their survey responses, they talked about federal grants that support vital services getting frozen, federal contracts that tribes were counting on to bring in revenue abruptly canceled, and layoffs at agencies they work closely with. With every administration, there are changes.

How those changes are implemented is a big thing. A lot of times we would like to see things done with a scapel instead of a chainsaw. None of the tribal leaders Marketplace reached out to were willing to talk on the record in what they see as a risky political environment. Mikayla Madrid is with the nonprofit Native Governance Center, which has been helping tribes navigate the change of administration. Just kind of the general theme has been chaos.

One thing she's noticed and that came up in the survey, federal funding and programs that support tribes sometimes getting swept up in Trump's anti-DEI push. That is concerning because Native nations and citizens of tribal nations are not under the diversity, equity, and inclusion umbrella. Instead, Madrid says the federal government's obligations to tribal nations are based in treaties.

But this second Trump administration has offered mixed messages on how it views its relationship with tribes, says economist Randall Aki at UCLA. This uncertainty is problematic in and of itself. If the uncertainty persists, Aki says it could stall growth in tribal economies. Tribal nations and governments are going through their days without knowing whether or not something is going to change. And that changes how they plan and forecast and invest. Just

Just like other nations, tribes aren't sure where they stand with their most important economic partner. I'm Savannah Peters for Marketplace. And in New York, I'm Sabree Beneshour with the Marketplace Morning Report from APM American Public Media.

Can we invest our way out of the climate crisis? Five years ago, it seemed like Wall Street was working on it until a backlash upended everything. So there's a lot of alignment between the dark money right and the oil industry on this effort. I'm Amy Scott, host of How We Survive, a podcast from Marketplace. In this season, we investigate the rise, fall, and reincarnation of climate-conscious investing.

Listen to How We Survive wherever you get your podcasts.