You can expect to pay more for a foreign car thanks to President Trump's new tariffs, but when will you see those price increases?
One economist says, they could happen immediately.
"I expect that you will start seeing prices going up very quickly," University of New Orleans economist Walter "Dub" Lane said. "Economics says that the real cost to the dealer is when he sells a car, he has to replace it with one that has a tariff on it, and that's his true cost of that car."
According to Lane, you still might be able to get a good price on a foreign car if you act quickly enough.
"Automakers may say, 'Well, I've got these on the lot at lower prices. Maybe I'll go ahead and sell them now.' They might be doing that, but it's not exactly clear how they are going to respond," Lane said.
However, Lane says those price hikes might be temporary. That's because there's no guarantee the tariffs will last because other countries might cave to President Trump's demands.
"You would see the prices go back to what they are now," Lane said. "We expect them to go up now, but I think they would come back down if the tariffs were to go away."
Related
