MARY LOUISE KELLY, HOST:
Refrigerators, washing machines and other appliances are the latest items to face new tariffs. The Trump administration is expanding its steel and aluminum tariffs. NPR's Alina Selyukh is here to explain how, exactly. Hi, Alina.
ALINA SELYUKH, BYLINE: Hello, hello.
KELLY: All right, so explain. What's the news here?
SELYUKH: OK, so the Commerce Department is expanding the current tariffs on steel and aluminum to apply not just to raw materials, but parts inside finished goods. OK, so right now, there's a tariff on imported steel and aluminum raw, and it actually just doubled last week to 50%. And starting June 23, this tariff will start applying to steel and aluminum content inside some imported appliances. So if you're shipping a dishwasher into the U.S., you'll have to pay the general tariff to import the machine plus that 50% tariff on the metal content of that dishwasher.
KELLY: And how many appliances are we talking? We said dishwashers. What else?
SELYUKH: Yeah. So also washing machines, dryers, refrigerators with freezers, separate freezers, stoves, ovens, garbage disposal.
KELLY: And what's the thinking here? Why?
SELYUKH: Well, in a way, it's an effort to undo the imbalance between American manufacturers and foreign ones. That was actually created by the original steel and aluminum tariffs. Right now, if you want to make a washing machine in the U.S., you have to pay that 50% tariff to bring in foreign steel. Well, your foreign competitor, meanwhile, can buy steel cheaper overseas, can make the washer overseas and then ship it complete into the U.S. facing a tariff of possibly just 10%. Domestic manufacturers have long argued that that's unfair, that imported appliances, in this case, should face the same tariff on whatever raw material was used inside of it, and that's what they're getting here. Two companies that will face this in particular are Samsung and LG. They do have some factories in the U.S., but they also ship a ton from South Korea and Mexico.
KELLY: Alina, just to bring this down to the level...
SELYUKH: Yeah.
KELLY: ...Of my kitchen...
SELYUKH: OK.
KELLY: ...Your kitchen and...
SELYUKH: Sure, yes.
KELLY: ...All of our kitchens....
SELYUKH: Let's do it.
KELLY: ...If my dishwasher conks out and I have to buy a new one next month, does this boil down to, it's going to cost me more?
SELYUKH: Probably. Maybe. For example, when President Trump in his first term imposed tariffs on foreign washers, that did boost domestic manufacturing, but prices for shoppers did also go up. And actually not just the washers, but also dryers, which did not face a tariff - but, you know, companies spread the costs on both appliances because they're often bought together.
KELLY: Sure.
SELYUKH: Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent faced the price question this week at a Senate hearing, and he pointed out that so far, tariffs have not caused a surge in inflation.
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SCOTT BESSENT: There has been nothing passed on. There has been no tariff recession, so no inflation, no recession due to tariffs.
SELYUKH: And he called out Home Depot, for example, as one company saying that it is not planning broad price increases to offset tariffs.
KELLY: That seems notable. Is it true?
SELYUKH: So what Home Depot - this is what Home Depot said in May, but I do want to clarify that when I followed up with Home Depot, the company did sort of specify that it might have to raise some prices, or it might have to change up the selection on the shelves to avoid losing money on tariffs. And of course, there is also a concern about the cumulative impact of tariffs. Bessant is right. Inflation overall, is holding steady. But home appliances were one of the main categories that did go up in price in May. Major appliances specifically went up by more than 4%.
KELLY: NPR's Alina Selyukh, happy dishwashing.
SELYUKH: Thank you.
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