The roller coaster of tariff talks took another twist Monday as impending tariffs on Canada and Mexico were delayed for a month. For Utah business professor Elena Patel, the pause offers little reassurance amid an unpredictable policy landscape.
Patel, an assistant professor at the University of Utah’s Eccles School of Business, highlighted the fragile nature of the North American supply chain. “It’s not a U.S. supply chain; it’s a US-Mexico-Canada supply chain,” she explained. With products crossing borders multiple times during production, tariffs could trigger widespread disruption.
Consumers won’t escape unscathed. “Businesses pass these costs right on to consumers,” Patel warned. From higher prices to reduced availability, the ripple effects could reshape everyday purchases.
While the delay offers a glimmer of hope, this pause is a temporary reprieve, not a resolution. Patel urges policymakers to consider the long-term implications of disrupting a deeply interconnected economic system. For now, businesses and consumers are left bracing for what could come next.