Made in America: 6 Items That Could Cost More If Made in the USA

Much of what is sold in the U.S., isn’t actually made here. However, impending tariffs could change that — along with standard pricing.

Contents

Furniture Machinery Toys and Games Electronics Solar Panels and Batteries Shoes Moving Production to the US Wouldn’t Be Easy

According to the U.S. Department of Commerce, items made in America composed 52% of the value of gross domestic purchases. Specifically, gross domestic purchases totaled $3.7 trillion, with $1.9 trillion attributed to items made in the U.S.

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While producing more products domestically might sound ideal, it may also mean higher prices. This could cause your wallet to take a hit in a variety of areas.

GOBankingRates spoke with Babak Hafezi, adjunct professor of International Business at American University, to find out what types of items could become more expensive if produced in the U.S. — below is what he said.

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Furniture

“Although the U.S. was one of the leading furniture manufacturers, it no longer is,” he said. “Even when companies attempted to keep manufacturing furniture in the U.S., it was for the ‘luxury’ market.”

Consequently, he said the prices for mid- to lower-end furniture manufacturing could increase anywhere from 1.5 times to 2.9 times the current price, if made in the U.S.

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Machinery

“Nearly all machinery required to go into factories is made in China,” he said. “Thus, even to bring production of machinery back into the U.S. we would need Chinese companies to manufacture them.”

He said machinery, especially the type that requires a high level of human capital for assembly, would be 2.8 times to five times more expensive to manufacture in the U.S.

Toys and Games

In the short term, Hafezi said toys and games could realize cost increases ranging from 1.9 times to six times their current price. However, this could decrease in the long term, if automation becomes a key factor in the manufacturing process.

If this happens, he said machines would become the primary “employees” in the manufacturing process, with humans playing a secondary role.

Electronics

If made in the U.S., many types of electronics would see price increases ranging from 2.2 times to seven times their current price, he said. This includes televisions, VoIP telephones and smaller electronics — such as calculators, hairdryers, blenders, electronic toothbrushes.

“If you remember, in the 1980s and early 90s, the U.S. had television manufacturing plants,” he said. “But they all moved to China, Taiwan and later to South Korea, because all the key components and boards were made [there] and perfected there.”

Solar Panels and Batteries

When it comes to the manufacturing of photovoltaic panels, circuits and batteries for solar power, China has a virtual monopoly, he said.

If companies tried to develop these products in the U.S. at scale, he said costs would rise by 1.3 times to three times their current price. For costs to decrease, hyper automation would be required.

Shoes

Globally, approximately 60% of shoes are made in China, Hafezi said. If production was moved to the U.S., costs would increase anywhere from two times to 3.6 times the prices Americans currently pay.

Moving Production to the US Wouldn’t Be Easy

On the surface, making more products in the U.S. might sound like a savvy way to avoid tariffs, but Hafezi said it’s more complicated than that.

Many key issues would have to be addressed, such as where raw materials will come from and if there’s even enough raw materials in the U.S. for to produce these products, he said. Additionally, matters such as the length of time it takes to receive raw materials, costs, environmental aspects, available resources, regulations and accessible talent would need to be addressed.

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