Who pays when tariffs make things more expensive to buy? I'm David Brancaccio in Los Angeles. The Trump

administration hopes tariffs encourage made in America. Tariffs might also raise money for the U.S.

Treasury to help offset planned tax cuts. Among the costs, people pay more for things, some more than

others. Marketplaces Nancy Marshall-Genzor reports.

President Trump's tariffs are meant to boost manufacturing and create jobs in the U.S.

But economists say importers will pass the cost of import taxes onto consumers.

The Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy, a progressive think tank, looked at what would happen next year if current tariffs were still in effect.

That is, an across-the-board tax of 10% on products from most countries, a 25% tariff on specific goods from many countries, and a 145% tax on most imports from China. The report found the poorest Americans

with incomes of less than $29,000 a year would have to spend around 6% more of their incomes

because of higher prices from the tariffs. Middle income consumers would pay out 5% more,

but the richest Americans would only spend 1.7% more.

This is because low-income consumers spend a higher proportion of their paychecks on necessities than wealthy families do.

I'm Nancy Marshall Genser for Marketplace.

By one analysis, now, the economy of the state of California is the

fourth largest in the world, bigger than the country of Japan. California's governor Gavin Newsom is

touting this. Bigest state for agriculture, California, biggest state for tech, entertainment. But overall,

California, is it really fourth or is it fifth? And does that matter? Here's Marketplace's Nova Safo.

When it comes to global economies, there are two powerhouses. The U.S. economy is worth nearly $30 trillion. China, around $19 trillion. And then there's everyone else. And in that context, yes, California did edge out Japan for all of 2024, with a gross domestic product of $4.1 trillion, slightly above Japan's $4 trillion.

Those totals don't account for inflation, so take them with a grain of salt.

Nevertheless, the point California's governor is making is that the state

is a giant economy, and it's a point he made last week when the state sued the Trump administration

over tariffs, arguing they hurt all sorts of industries within its borders, from manufacturing

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