Then Trump imposed sweeping tariffs on China, and overnight Deena found herself paying a 25% surcharge on every cable and component she imported – up from zero previously. She was forced to absorb the costs and for a while thought she would go bust. "I literally thought I am going to start and end a business in less than a year," she says. "I had spent all this time, money and effort, and to have something like this blindside you was shocking."
torsdag 13. mars 2025
US tech firms feel pinch from China tariffs
Deena Ghazarian had only been in business for a year when the trade policies of President Donald Trump's first term of office sent her company into a tailspin. It was 2019 and her California-based firm, Austere, had just agreed to supply several big US retailers with its high-end audio and video accessories that are largely manufactured in China.
Then Trump imposed sweeping tariffs on China, and overnight Deena found herself paying a 25% surcharge on every cable and component she imported – up from zero previously. She was forced to absorb the costs and for a while thought she would go bust. "I literally thought I am going to start and end a business in less than a year," she says. "I had spent all this time, money and effort, and to have something like this blindside you was shocking."
Then Trump imposed sweeping tariffs on China, and overnight Deena found herself paying a 25% surcharge on every cable and component she imported – up from zero previously. She was forced to absorb the costs and for a while thought she would go bust. "I literally thought I am going to start and end a business in less than a year," she says. "I had spent all this time, money and effort, and to have something like this blindside you was shocking."
