Trump Tariffs to Hit NRIs’ Family Budgets in US
Prices of rice, groceries, textiles set to rise in US; retailers and students brace for cost spike
Hyderabad: United States President Donald Trump’s decision to impose a 25 per cent tariff on Indian imports is set to impact thousands of Indians living in America, as the prices of several essential products are expected to go up sharply from the first week of August.
Items like rice, pulses, clothing, decoration items, and ethnic groceries, all of which are commonly exported from India, will now become more expensive for the Indian population in the country.
M. Ramesh, a software engineer from Warangal living in New Jersey, said: “Rice is a must in our household. We used to buy a 10 kg bag for around $30, which is already very costly. But the tariffs might increase the price to $40 or above. It will burden almost every middle-class Indian family here.”
Supriya, a student in Dallas, said: “I work a part-time job for my expenses here, and this does not even fully sustain me. Even small things like pickles and turmeric powder going up in price will shoot up my monthly budget.”
Although the impact of tariff imposition is yet to be discerned, retailers, wholesalers and unions are already expressing concern. The Confederation of Indian Textile Industry (CITI) said that the tariff rate for India presents a stiff challenge for India’s textile sector.
K. Raghavendra, a partner in an Indian supermarket in New Jersey, said that they are expecting revisions in prices from their suppliers. “Our shipments from India are already being taxed at higher rates, and we are preparing ourselves for being charged with higher prices for commodities. Our wholesaler has already informed us that prices will rise even more. Starting next week, most of our Indian stock will have new pricing.”
Businessmen and retailers are expecting the Indian government to intervene and have trade calls with the US government.
“We are anticipating for the tariff issue to get resolved following a bilateral trade agreement between India and the US. In the interim, we will have to deal with this tough situation in the best manner possible by doing all we can to raise the competitiveness of the Indian textile and apparel domain,” said CITI chairman Rakesh Mehra.
