All posts tagged "American Consumers"

President Donald Trump's sweeping tariffs are ratcheting up the cost of everyday items, including staples that Americans routinely rely on for comfort — like chocolate.

Mara Gay with The New York Times told MSNBC's Jonathan Lemire Friday that Trump's tried-and-true "blame game" won't be enough to distract Americans from the reality of higher prices hitting cocoa beans and other simple pleasures.

"The Trump administration really doesn't have popular support for the tariffs," Gay said, "so, really what we're seeing here is a one trick pony shop where the only thing that they know how to do in The Trump administration is outsource the blame, and blame the courts. And I think that's not really going to distract the American people from any upheaval in the economy, which we're already seeing in prices increasing." ...

The U.S. trade war with China seemed to have reached a stalemate Friday, with China calling President Donald Trump's 125 percent tariffs a "joke," then hitting back with the same sky-high rates.

Trump's 125 percent tariffs were issued on top of the standing 20 percent tariffs, bringing the total to 145 percent for Chinese goods.

CNN's Boris Sanchez asked anchor Jim Sciutto about his "perspective" on how the White House was handling the situation, specifically the fact that Trump is demanding Chinese leader Xi Jinping reach out first for a phone call, and not the other way around. ...

Illegal music downloading by American consumers fell last year, continuing a trend from 2005, a survey showed.