Tariffs drive up prices on many school supplies in Utah
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Utah parents are heading into the 2025 back-to-school shopping season facing rising prices amid President Trump's tariffs.
Why it matters: Back-to-school is the second-biggest retail event of the year, after the winter holidays.
- This season is a stress test for family budgets and a strategic challenge for retailers trying to hold onto value-conscious shoppers.
Catch up quick: New U.S. tariffs on Chinese imports — including backpacks, pens, binders and shoes — kicked in earlier this year, rose sharply, then came back down to levels still historically high.
Zoom in: In its annual back-to-school shopping guide, KSL-TV found prices doubled year to year at some retailers for notebooks and glue sticks, with more big price hikes on rulers and binders.
- Smith's Marketplace prices, however stayed the same — or fell — for all items on the sample shopping list.
- Meanwhile, a calculator was cheaper this year than last at every store as of last week, driving down the total costs from last year.
Between the lines: Where you shop matters a lot.
- Total costs for the same supplies ranged from about $35 to almost $60, depending on where KSL-TV's reporters went.
What they're saying: "Backpacks are one million dollars now just FYI," Deseret News columnist Meg Walter posted on X.
The big picture: 67% of back-to-school shoppers had already started buying for the coming school year as of early June, according to the National Retail Federation's annual survey of nearly 7,600 consumers, released last month.
- That's up from 55% last year and the highest since NRF started tracking early shopping in 2018, the group said.
- 51% of families said they are shopping earlier this year compared with last "out of concern that prices will rise due to tariffs," NRF said.
By the numbers: Nationally, tariffs added about $73 million in taxes on back-to-school items in May and June, according to an analysis of federal data released Sunday by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, which opposes Trump's trade war.
The latest: On Monday, Trump extended a deadline another 90 days for China to reach a trade deal or face the same duties the U.S. imposed in April, when tariffs were at their peak, CNBC reported.
What's next: The full impact of tariffs hasn't hit shelves yet — and back-to-school season may be the first test of how much price pressure shoppers will tolerate, according to a Wells Fargo Investment Institute report released Monday.
- The June Consumer Price Index shows a 3.4% increase in stationery, stationery supplies and gift wrap and a 10.2% price index in college textbooks.
What we're watching: July's CPI data is expected Tuesday.