Chinatown Merchants Struggle as Trump-Era Tariffs Drive Up Costs

Small business owners in Manhattan’s historic Chinatown are sounding the alarm over skyrocketing operating costs, blaming lingering Trump-era tariffs for pricing them to the brink. With a 145% import tax still in place on many Chinese goods, shopkeepers say the cost of essential items—ranging from incense and noodles to traditional herbal medicines—has risen dramatically, threatening their long-term survival.

Retailers throughout the neighborhood say the sharp increase in import duties has upended their supply chains and forced them to absorb costs they can’t pass along. . .