Tariffs added 2.9 percentage points to inflation in 67 product categories in the US — CNBC
In the United States, tariffs introduced in 2025 and early 2026 added 2.9 percentage points to inflation in a sample of 67 consumer goods categories as of February 2026. Without these duties, prices for the goods studied would have fallen by nearly 1% over this period, according to a study by the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, CNBC reports.
Impact of duties on prices
The study’s authors calculated that a one-percentage-point increase in the average tariff rate raised consumer goods prices by about a quarter of a percent after roughly one year. Annual price growth in the tracked categories peaked in early 2026.
About two-thirds of the tariff-related price increase, according to the researchers’ estimate, was directly attributable to duties. The remainder resulted from indirect effects, including higher costs for US companies that use imported parts and materials. The authors of the study, Mary Amiti, Sebastian Heise, and David Weinstein, noted that tariffs have a larger and more persistent effect on consumer prices than the direct effect of duties alone shows.
More current news is available on the UA.News Telegram channel Telegram.
Prices may remain higher
According to the researchers’ forecast, consumers will continue to pay higher prices in 2027 due to the consequences of tariff policy. At the same time, the Federal Reserve Bank of New York team estimated that about 26% of last year’s tariff increase was passed through into higher prices.
In February, the US Supreme Court struck down a significant portion of President Donald Trump’s tariffs, leading to multibillion-dollar refunds for retailers. The White House said it intended to continue applying duties through alternative mechanisms. According to CNBC, imports from many countries are now often subject to tariffs of around 10%, which in many cases are lower than the rates of the previous round.
