According to certain news reports, Americans are scrambling in December to stock up on cars, refrigerators and other big-ticket items in anticipation of new Trump administration tariffs, which will drive up the cost of anything imported from another country. Which is, like, almost everything.
The biggest things will, of course, see the biggest price increases. Cars… refrigerators… yachts…
But little things also add up. I think we all remember what happened with toilet paper, when everyone tried to stock up at the same time. Even the paper towels and Kleenex disappeared.
Apparently, people don’t want to remember.
Bad things happen when everyone foresees a disaster on the horizon, all at the same time. The best approach is to let the disaster happen, and then deal with it afterwards. It probably won’t turn out as bad as you imagined.
For example, Republicans taking over the federal government. We should just let the disaster happen. If it hasn’t happened already.
We’re Americans, proud of our ability to deal with disasters. And also our ability to buy things at the lowest possible cost. In fact, the knack for buying things at a discounted price might be the very definition of “an American”. If 22.5 pounds of Fresh Step kitty litter sells for $17.29 at City Market, but the same box sells for $16.99 at Walmart, we’re almost certain to make the purchase at Walmart. (Speaking for myself.)
On that subject:
Out of curiosity, I looked at the label information on a box of Fresh Step, and discovered that the product was “Manufactured in USA from global ingredients.” I think that means, “Imported from China but packaged into the box in the USA.”
Other people might be scrambling to buy a new refrigerator before the tariffs kick in. I’m planning to stock up on Fresh Step.
But perhaps you really want a refrigerator? According to a recent article by Abha Bhattarai and Jaclyn Peiser in The Washington Post, you might already be too late.
Although it’s not clear whether that increased demand is driving higher prices just yet, economists say it’s notable that both appliances and new vehicles got costlier in November even as inflation eased in other areas.
“It is clear that people are buying ahead,” said Diane Swonk, chief economist at KPMG. “It becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy: The more you buy, the more you push up prices in anticipation of price increases.”
So maybe stocking up on Fresh Step is exactly the wrong thing to do? I could be unintentionally helping drive up the price of kitty litter for every cat owner in the country.
But what other choice does a red-blooded American have?
To make matters worse, I have to report that I subsequently inspected the labels on several toilet paper packages. They all said, “Manufactured in the USA from domestic and foreign products.”
Looks like we’re really screwed.
Even yachts are getting more expensive.
I mention “yachts” because another Washington Post article, by Jeff Stein, Stephanie Hays, Nate Jones, and Federica Cocco, talks about the Russian super-yacht Amadea that was confiscated in 2022 from Russian oligarch Suleyman Kerimov. The U.S. government planned to sell it quickly and donate the money to Ukraine, but it’s still sitting at a dock in San Diego.
According to records obtained by The Post, coupled with federal court filings, the U.S. government has spent roughly $30 million to maintain the Amadea since it was seized — a cost figure a Justice Department spokesperson later confirmed.
They should have confiscated Kerimov’s refrigerator instead.