Here are the morning’s top stories on Wednesday, December 4, 2024…
- President-elect Trump is proposing to increase tariffs on products imported from China, Canada and Mexico. That, he says, will slash trade deficits and help domestic manufacturing compete by raising prices on imports. But imposing tariffs on imported wines and winemaking supplies could hurt California’s wine industry more than it helps.
- The final congressional seat that was up for grabs in California is going to Central Valley Democrat Adam Gray. Gray defeated Republican incumbent John Duarte in California’s 13th Congressional District race, by fewer than 200 votes.
- A San Bernardino County man has been arrested and charged with illegally shipping weapons and ammunition to North Korea.
Wine Businesses Brace For Potential Tariffs In 2025
Days after winning a second term in the White House, President-elect Donald Trump proposed a 10 to 20% tariff on all goods coming into the United States. The idea, he says, is to reduce trade deficits and help domestic businesses by raising prices on imports. But many in the U.S. wine industry say that imposing tariffs on imported wines and winemaking supplies would hurt the sector more than it helps.
You might think that adding a tax — or tariff — on imported wines would give the domestic industry a boost. Why buy more expensive bottles from overseas when you can pay the same amount or less for local wines? But experts say the issue is more complicated than that — and it starts with who pays the bill.
Ben Aneff is head of the U.S. Wine Trade Alliance in Sacramento and the managing partner of Tribeca Wine Merchants in New York. “We sort of all end up paying for the tariff, but the importer writes the check to the U.S. government,” Aneff said. “Then, they would obviously pass that cost up to the distributor, who would pass that cost up to the restaurant or the retailer, who would end up having to pass costs on to consumers.”
Adam Gray Captures California’s 13th US House District
Democrat Adam Gray captured California’s 13th Congressional District on Tuesday, unseating Republican Rep. John Duarte in the final U.S. House contest to be decided this year.