Donald Trump promised sweeping tariffs when he ran for president. And now he’s delivered them — shocking Wall Street, which thought he was merely talking tough.
The 10% tariff on all global goods, and the far higher taxes aimed at China, Japan, Vietnam, and Europe, are already destabilizing the global economy. Canada and Mexico faced tariffs before the so-called “Liberation Day” and could endure more in the future.
The trade wars have begun and the consequences for New York are already being felt.
Trump’s antagonism of Canada has led to a sharply reduced amount of tourism into New York. More than one million Canadians visited the five boroughs last year, injecting hundreds of millions of dollars into the local economy. An estimated $600 million was spent by Canadian tourists in 2024.
Cities and towns along the Canadian border are already suffering too. When there was goodwill between the two countries, it was exceedingly common for Canadians to travel into the Buffalo area. They’re starting to stay home. “Now is also the time to choose Canada,” former Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau recently said.
The anger towards America goes beyond the tariffs. Even before taking office, Trump bullied Trudeau, and has repeatedly spoken about annexing Canada as America’s 51st state. This won’t happen, but it’s generated widespread outrage in Canada. The American national anthem is now booed at hockey games; Wayne Gretzky, the greatest hockey player of all time, has become a polarizing figure because he’s close to Trump.
None of this bodes well for New York because international tourists tend to outspend domestic visitors. For Canadians in a big city like Toronto, New York is a quick plane trip away, a nice way to unload cash on a weekend. The museums, the restaurants, and Broadway all benefit.
The Trump-induced blow to tourism is especially tough because the city, in the last year or two, has only just returned to its pre-pandemic heights when it comes to tourism. Aggressive tariffs don’t only make foreign imports in the U.S. more expensive — forcing businesses here to spend more and pass those costs onto consumers — but also antagonize potential visitors from other countries. Trump has made it clear he wants America to be a lone wolf.
For most tourists, that concept is quite alienating.
New York’s economy is resilient enough to weather this, and there are enough tourists coming from within the U.S. to ensure that Manhattan doesn’t enter into anything like the doom spiral feared during the Covid era. But the uncertainty surrounding the tariffs makes planning much more difficult — and could take a chunk out of municipal tax revenues, since so much of New York’s economic strength is tied to tourism.
An outstanding question is whether these blanket tariffs will persist throughout Trump’s four years or if they’re merely a negotiating tactic to secure better trade deals for the U.S. It’s plausible, seeing the market chaos, that Trump could eventually back off. Wall Street is hoping that’s true, anyway.
Just as likely, Trump is serious. He’s been talking about trade deficits for 40 years. Protectionism has always been an obsession, and returning America to an 1890s-style tariff regime is something he’s plenty earnest about. If so, he’ll have to live with the fallout — both economic and political.
In the short-term, there won’t be a manufacturing revival in the U.S., but prices are bound to rise and the economy runs the risk of stagflation. Incumbent Republicans should worry. Anti-Trump sentiment in the electorate is growing and a blue wave could crest next year, sweeping Republicans out of Congress. It won’t be hard, certainly, for Democrats to campaign against these tariffs. In the meantime, though, New York may be in for some pain.
Ross Barkan is a journalist and author in New York City.
