TARIFFS imposed on imported goods by the Trump administration in 2025 fell mostly on US importers and consumers rather than overseas exporters, as shown by a study published on the website of the Federal Reserve Bank of New York on Thursday, Feb. 12, 2026.
“We find that nearly 90 percent of the tariffs’ economic burden fell on US firms and consumers,” said the paper authored by staff economists at the New York Fed and another economist at Columbia University.
As much as 94 percent of new tariffs in the first eight months of 2025 were absorbed by US importers and consumers, according to the study.
The share of tariffs borne by US importers and consumers stood at 92 percent from September to October and 86
percent in November.
“These findings are consistent with two other studies that report high pass-through of tariffs to US import prices,” said the paper.
Average tariff rate
US average tariff rate on imported goods increased from 2.6 percent at the beginning of 2025 to 13 percent by the end of 2025, according to the study.
Moreover, the results of the study imply that US import prices for goods subject to the average tariff increased by 11 percent more than those for goods not subject to tariffs.
The US Department of Homeland Security collected US$287 billion in customs duties, taxes and fees in 2025, up 192 percent versus the prior year, according to the US Department of Treasury.
In particular, the US Customs and Border Protection collected more than $200 billion in tariffs between Jan. 20 and Dec. 15, 2025, enabled by more than 40 executive orders put in place by the
Trump administration.
What has long been known is that US consumers and businesses pay the costs of Trump’s tariffs, noted Bruce Klingner, a senior fellow at the Mansfield Foundation, while he posted a report on the study. / XINHUA