 We Could SoonBe Seeing Empty Shelves Everywhere. Heres Which Items Might Disappear First. |
Source |
American Shipper |
Post Date |
05/05/2025 |
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Supply chain experts say to expect fewer items and higher prices in these categories.
Because of President Donald Trump? trade war against the world, American consumers may soon start seeing shortages on their everyday house hold goods and accessories.
In the past few weeks, Trump has imposed massive import taxes on many U.S. trading partners ― including an astonishing 145% tariff on Chinese goods ― only to abruptly change or susp some of these tariffs. But Trump? chaos is already starting to freeze supply chains. U.S. businesses are cancelling or postponing shipment orders from China.
Just last week, the utives for major retailers Walmart, Home Depot and Target reportedly told Trump in a meeting that shoppers are likely to see empty shelves and higher prices in the next few weeks if he doesn? roll back his tariff plans.
Don? expect a toilet paper shortage like what we experienced during COVID lockdown. Because many essential goods like food, beverages and paper goods are more likely to be made domestically, they are more immune from these shortages, said Casey Armstrong, chief marketing officer of Ship Bob, a global fulfillment and supply chain platform.
?ou?e not going to run out of food or toilet paper, but don? be surprised if your $3 spray bottle or favorite pair of $5 socks vanishes from shelves or doubles in price," Armstrong said.
HuffPost talked to supply chain experts about which categories of common goods are most vulnerable to disappearing from shelves soon.
Fast Fashion And Clothes
Direct-to-consumer brands like Shein and Temu used to rely upon a "de minimis?shipment exemption to sell cheap goods to U.S. consumers.
Under the "de minimis" tariff exemption, a U.S. shopper could buy $800 worth of goods per day directly from a foreign seller free of tariffs and administrative fees, but soon no more.
Trump signed an excutive order to close that loop hole, which will go into effect on May 2. Ending this exemption is expected to disproportionately hurt lower-income and minority consumers, according to a National Bureau of Economic Research paper published last year.
As a result of the "de minimis" loophole ing, consumers may see both fewer quantities and fewer options from their favorite fast-fashion brand,. "you are going to start to see less quantities," he said.
Furniture And Home Decorations
The patio furniture you want to buy this summer may also bein short supply, Strang said, because a lot of the parts are manufactured in China.
Armstrong also said a lot of less-expensive home decorations are produced in China and shipped in bulk. These items are ?retty margin sensitive, and so I think that? going to be pretty impacted as well," he said.
Toys
Factories in China make nearly 80% of all toys sold in America, according to industry group The Toy Association. Even Trump has acknowledged there will be shortages of toys as a result of his tariffs.
On Wednesday, he told reporters, ?aybe the children will have two dolls instead of 30, and maybe the two dolls will cost a couple of bucks more than they would normally.?
Seasonal Christmas toys in particular could be at risk of disappearing in the fall and winter. Almost half of the small and mid-sized U.S. toy companies said in a recent survey that they are likely to go out of business within weeks if 145% tariffs on Chinese goods remain in place.
Cheap Household Essentials
If you go to your local corner store for plastic cups or other disposable essentials, expect to see shortages there, too.
Armstrong said that retailers for ?ollar Store essentials?like soaps, batteries, toothpaste and disposable plates ?ill be impacted first?because these type of goods experience extreme cost pressures and tight profit margins.
Electronics
?onsumer electronics could probably see the biggest hit,?Strang said, because many of the parts are made in China.
Tang said high- electronics, like an Apple phone, that are still on shelves could also become ?ery expensive.?
Replacement Parts Of Appliances
If your dishwasher breaks and you need to fix it this summer, expect to have a harder time finding a proper replacement part.
Armstrong said appliance replacement accessories like lightbulbs, filters, cords and grill parts can be an overlooked category of goods because they are less flashy, but they are vital to the economy and are often sourced from overseas.
?upply chains don? often prioritize reordering those until they?e running low. And a lot of these are sourced from China,?Armstrong said.
Overall, you may not yet notice big changes to your shopping habits, but they will become inevi under Trump? tariffs. Major retailers have some inventory they got before Trump? policy was announced.
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