By Brooke Thomson
President & CEO

Here we go again.

At a time when many Massachusetts businesses are still trying to secure rebates on the unconstitutional tariffs imposed by the Trump Administration on “Liberation Day,” the president on Friday imposed new levies on 80 US trading partners.

The tariffs were a bad idea last April and remain a bad idea today. They will cause significant harm to Massachusetts businesses, which export billions of dollars worth of goods each year to 210 markets globally. These exports support one of five jobs throughout the commonwealth.

A quick recap:

The U.S. Supreme Court ruled on February 20 that the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) does not authorize the president to impose the “Liberation Day” tariffs, affirming that the power to tax rests with Congress.

Before the ink was dry on the Supreme Court decision, the president imposed a 10% tariff on all imports under Section 122 of the Trade Act of 1974, which allows the president to impose temporary import duties (up to 15% for 150 days) to address “large and serious” balance-of-payments deficits. Those tariffs expired at 12:01 am Friday.

In their place, the administration on Friday imposed a new set of tariffs on 80 trading partners under section 301 of the Trade Act of 1974, which allows the president to impose tariffs if the US trade representative has conducted the required investigations and found sufficient evidence of unfair labor practices that affect American commerce.

Countries representing 99.4 percent of US imports will be subject to either a 10% or 12.5% duty.

The trading partners that will be subject a 10% tariff are those who “have made commitments to adopt, and effectively enforce, forced labor import prohibitions,” said the US trade representative. This includes Canada, the European Union, India, Mexico and the United Kingdom. Those that have “failed to adopt a forced labor import prohibition”, including Australia, Brazil, China and Japan, will be subject to a 12.5% tariff rate.

Several of those countries are among the largest trading partners for Massachusetts companies.

The administration believes that these trade actions are a way to rebuild America’s manufacturing economy, or, at the very least, get a better deal from other countries.

We disagree. The announcement of sweeping tariffs last April drove the AIM Business Confidence Index into pessimistic territory for 11 months until it recovered in June. Employers who participate in the survey tell us repeatedly that uncertainty surrounding the nation’s tariff policies has made long-term planning virtually impossible while taking some overseas markets off the table.

The stakes are enormous.

Massachusetts exports in 2025 included almost $39 billion worth of products such as semiconductor manufacturing equipment, vaccines and medical/scientific instruments. Top destinations for these products were China, Switzerland, Mexico, Canada and the United Kingdom. Product exports represent 4.8 percent of Massachusetts GDP.

The commonwealth also exported $42 billion worth of services, according to data compiled by the US Chamber of Commerce. Most services export growth has been driven by digital trade, which is allowing more Massachusetts companies to reach customers abroad more easily.

The Consuls General of Canada and Mexio, appearing last week at an AIM International Business Council discussion, acknowledged the fraught nature of current trade relations with the US.

Bernadette Jordan, Consul General of Canada in Boston, said many Canadian industries “are really hurting” because of tariffs, an irony given the long history of collaboration between the two nations on trade, national security and border issues.

“One of the things Canada is doing is building our own resilience…73 percent of our trade is with the United States, and we have to start looking at other markets.”

AIM and its member companies urge the administration to reconsider an action that will impede our collective efforts to expand the state’s economy.