So grave would be the "ripple effect" damage to Americans if President Donald Trump makes good on his threat to impose tariffs on Mexican imports that the U.S. Chamber of Commerce won’t rule out mounting a legal challenge to block the duties, said the business group’s chief policy officer. The tariffs would have “such a negative impact for the American economy and American families, we have no choice but to explore every option available to push back,” Executive Vice President Neil Bradley told journalists Friday.

The U.S. Chamber of Commerce said it is considering suing the Trump administration over its use of the International Emergency Economic Powers Act to levy tariffs on all Mexican imports beginning June 10. The administration said it will start at 5 percent, and if Mexico does not do more to stem the flow of Central American migrants to the U.S., it will raise that tariff to 10 percent July 1, then increase it by 5 percent each month until it reaches 25 percent Oct. 1.

U.S. exporters and others expressed concern over President Donald Trump’s May 30 threat to impose new tariffs on Mexico, saying the move would lead to retaliatory measures and would significantly damage U.S. manufacturers and farmers.

The Trump administration, furious that Central American migrant asylum seekers continue to stream to the U.S., says that unless Mexico can "dramatically reduce or eliminate the number of illegal aliens" coming to the U.S., it will levy tariffs on all Mexican imports, starting June 10. The tariff will begin at 5 percent, go to 10 percent on July 1, and then increase by 5 percent each month until it reaches 25 percent on Oct. 1.

China is finding ways other than tariff increases to retaliate against U.S. exporters, further damaging the U.S.’s struggling agricultural export sector, panelists said during a Washington International Trade Association discussion on U.S.-China trade. The expected retaliation from China -- along with stalled trade negotiations and the increased difficulty of accessing China’s markets -- could lead to crippling, long-term consequences for some U.S. exporters, the panelists said.

Six weeks ago, the senior vice president of the U.S.-China Business Council believed the Trump administration's pressure was successfully empowering Chinese officials who believe in reforming China's capitalist/state-controlled hybrid economy. "I was pretty optimistic that we were, as a consequence, going to be able to say that the administration had achieved things that probably no previous administration had genuinely been able to achieve," Erin Ennis told an audience member at the Washington International Trade Association China trade panel May 29.

A third of Ohio farmers' production is exported, and 25 percent of Ohio's manufacturing jobs are supported by exports, said Sen. Rob Portman, R-Ohio, who was U.S. Trade Representative during the George W. Bush administration. Portman, who gave a speech on the Senate floor the evening of May 22, praised the Trump administration for lifting Section 232 steel and aluminum tariffs on Canada and Mexico so that the NAFTA rewrite can be passed in Congress and in Mexico and Canada.

International Trade Today is providing readers with some of the top stories for May 13-17 in case they were missed.

Walmart is working with suppliers to manage pricing after the Trump administration hiked Section 301 tariffs to 25 percent last week on $200 billion worth of Chinese goods (see 1905090018), said Chief Financial Officer Brett Biggs on a fiscal Q1 earnings call Thursday. Increased tariffs “will increase prices for customers,” said Biggs. With the administration's threat Monday to impose 25 percent tariffs on Chinese imports not previously dutied in the Section 301 investigation (see 1905140025), Walmart will monitor any upcoming U.S.-China trade talks, and is “hopeful that an agreement can be reached” to avert imposition of the fourth tranche of tariffs, said Biggs. Walmart's goal “is to always be the low-priced leader, and we will actively manage pricing and margins as warranted with our customers and shareholders in mind.” Walmart's supply-chain teams are focused on “executing appropriate mitigation strategies,” including possibly sourcing goods from alternative countries of origin, he said. In Q1, Walmart revenues rose 1 percent vs. a year ago to $123.9 billion, tempered by currency headwinds, the company said. Walmart U.S. Q1 revenues were $80.38 billion. Traffic in U.S. stores, now called transactions, rose 1.1 percent, Walmart said, while Q1 tickets grew 2.3 percent over the year-ago quarter. E-commerce sales were “robust,” at 37 percent growth, and contributed 140 basis points to the U.S. segment’s comp sales increase, said Biggs. From Q1 forward, Walmart is including e-commerce transactions that were previously reported in the “ticket” category as “comp transactions,” Biggs said, encompassing in-store, clubs and e-commerce businesses. CE products weren't referenced among categories highlighted for contributing to Walmart U.S.’ 3.4 percent comparative sales bump in Q1, but toys and “wireless” were highlighted in the company’s earnings presentation. The company also credited momentum in food and consumables, pharmacy sales that benefited from “branded drug inflation,” Easter, home and lawn, and garden sales for its “highest Q1 comp in nine years.” In the quarter, the company announced new goals to support recycling in its private brands packaging in Walmart U.S., Canada and Mexico, as part of broader plastic waste reduction goals, said CEO Doug McMillon. Goals include making private brand packaging 100 percent recyclable, reusable or industrially compostable by 2025, to have 20 percent recycled content in its packaging, and making it easier for customers to recycle by including “customer-friendly” labeling on product packaging; Walmart is challenging branded suppliers to set similar targets, he said.

Smartphones are the largest of eight classifications of consumer tech products that would bear the biggest brunt of the 25 percent Section 301 tariffs proposed Monday on $300 billion in imports not previously dutied during the U.S.-China trade war (see 1905130066), CTA’s top trade strategist told us Tuesday. “The import values of the products that hit our members are massive,” emailed Vice President-International Trade Sage Chandler.