JPMorgan: Tariffs Severely Impact U.S. and Chinese Mid-Sized Businesses

According to Xinhua News Agency, a report released by the Morgan Stanley Research Institute on February 19th states that U.S. medium-sized businesses have been severely impacted by tariffs, with their monthly tariff expenses increasing to three times the original amount since early 2025.

The report shows that U.S. medium-sized businesses’ monthly tariff expenses began to rise sharply from April 2025, reaching approximately three times the level before April by August, and then stabilizing at a high level.

The report states that, overall, tariffs account for about 10% of all international expenses for U.S. medium-sized businesses; for those U.S. medium-sized businesses that pay tariffs, the proportion of tariff expenses in their international expenditures has increased to about 15%.

The report concludes by citing the latest research this year, which indicates that U.S. companies and consumers bear 96% of the tariff costs. Other studies also show that as of October last year, 43% of tariff costs had been passed on to consumer prices, meaning most of the costs are borne by businesses. In the long run, this situation is unsustainable.

A recent study published by the Federal Reserve Bank of New York shows that approximately 90% of the additional costs resulting from the U.S. government’s tariff increases in 2025 are borne by U.S. consumers and businesses. The U.S. government has previously claimed multiple times that “tariffs are borne by foreign exporters,” generating substantial revenue for the United States.