San Francisco Chinatown businesses had been hoping for a bustling tourism season this year, but many now say the trade war President Donald Trump is waging against China is threatening to shatter those hopes.
Chinatown business owners say prices for many of the basics they import have skyrocketed. Some even worry the trade war will have a bigger impact than the pandemic.
“A lot of merchants telling me right now they have to mark up at least 40 to 50% on their merchandise,” said Edward Siu with the Chinatown Merchants United Association of San Francisco.
Siu said because of Trump’s tariff plan many of the association’s members don’t actually know how much it’s going to cost to keep their shelves stocked. They’re waiting for prices on everything from items to sell in their shops to special ingredients needed for local restaurant favorites.
That uncertainty is what’s forcing small business owners to consider raising prices and potentially even cut other expenses like jobs.
“If this continues I think the pressure definitely is going to affect employment and also vacancy in Chinatown,” said Donald Luu with the San Francisco Chinese Chamber of Commerce.
Chinatown leaders said Trump’s trade war with China has the potential to hit Chinatown even harder than the pandemic because during the pandemic the state and federal governments stepped in with financial aid to keep small businesses afloat.
During a news conference Tuesday, state Assemblymember Matt Haney noted that California has now joined other states to sue the Trump administration over the tariffs. Gov. Gavin Newsom has also said he’s trying to figure out if he can negotiate special deals with international trading partners that would exempt California from the new tariffs, but none of that has been finalized.
In the meantime, Haney said legislators are considering the possibility of some kind of financial relief.
“We should look at direct support because if a business closes that business likely isn’t coming back,” he said. “We saw that during the pandemic.”
Neighborhood leaders said if Trump doesn’t dial back his trade war or courts don’t step in somehow their hopes for a bustling summer travel season could go bust.
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