Two-thirds say Trump tariff plans will add to rising costs: Survey

Over two-thirds of Americans say President-elect Trump’s plan to impose tariffs will add to the rising costs of goods, according to a new survey.

The Harris Poll, released Wednesday to The Guardian, found that 69 percent of Americans think the incoming commander-in-chief’s proposed tariffs will lead to “much" or "somewhat” higher prices on domestic goods. 

Over half of the respondents across the political spectrum agreed, with 79 percent of Democrats, 68 percent of independents and 59 percent of Republicans, saying they think that tariffs will lead to higher prices.

The poll’s results came just two days after Trump said he would impose new tariffs on goods imported from Mexico, Canada and China’s on his first day back in office next year. The president-elect wrote Monday that he would stick a 25 percent tariff on goods coming in from Mexico and Canada, while a 10 percent one would be slapped on China.

He cited the nations' need to do more to crack down on fentanyl coming into the U.S. and strengthen their border security as the reason.

The majority of the respondents, 76 percent, said that companies will raise the prices of goods for consumers if the president-elect's tariffs are implemented, the survey found.

Some are already planning to adjust. Approximately 44 percent of respondents said they are making plans to buy goods before Trump is inaugurated on Jan. 20. Nearly two-thirds, 62 percent, said they think they need to alter their buying sprees for next year if those tariffs are in place, the data shows.

Just over half of GOP voters, 51 percent, said that tariffs will have a positive impact on the country’s economic outlook. Around 27 percent of independents said the same along with 20 percent of Democrats, according to the poll.

The Harris survey was conducted between Nov. 14-16 among 2,112 U.S. adults. The margin of error was 2.5 percentage points.