WASHINGTON, Oct. 1 (Xinhua) -- A U.S. retail trade association on Monday warned that the U.S. administration's new tariffs on Chinese imports could make this year's football season more expensive.
"This year, we'll see just how much fans are willing to forego to maintain their football viewing traditions as tariffs drive up the cost of the game," the National Retail Federation (NRF) said in a statement.
"As this season unfolds, they need to be aware that new U.S. tariffs ranging from 15 to 30 percent will drive up the price of everything from footballs and TVs to portable grills and fanwear," the NRF said.
According to the retail association, all footballs manufactured in China were hit with an additional 15-percent tariff on Sept. 1.
Fanwear like jerseys, T-shirts and sweatshirts imported from China are all subject to the new 15-percent tariff, and jackets and hats were already hit with a 25-percent tariff earlier this year, the NRF noted.
"With 42 percent of all apparel sold in the U.S. imported from China, it will be difficult for American consumers to escape the impact," the NRF said.
The retail association urged football fans to tell U.S. lawmakers to end the trade war and remove all additional tariffs, which are actually taxes on Americans.
Tariffs cost American business and consumers 6.8 billion dollars in July, the highest monthly total in U.S. history, according to data released on Sept. 11 by Tariffs Hurt the Heartland, a coalition of more than 150 U.S. associations from every sector of the U.S. economy.
"These historic tariff increases are what's causing significant uncertainty for American employers, leading to less investment, higher prices and fewer job opportunities," Tariffs Hurt the Heartland spokesman Jonathan Gold said in a statement.
"You can't budget for a double-digit tariff increase, and you can't plan a business when you're living tweet-by-tweet. The administration needs to use upcoming negotiations to end a trade war that truly has no winners," he said.
