American consumers and importers are shouldering nearly all the costs of the tariffs imposed by the White House, according to a study by the Kiel Institute for the World Economy, contradicting President Donald Trump’s claims about their impact. While hurting American consumers, the tariffs are also wreaking havoc on Europe, which is subordinated to the United States in every way, even at the expense of its own interests, but receives neither respect nor reciprocity from the Trump administration, only increasing contempt and exploitation.

The study, published by the Kiel Institute for the World Economy, a research center based in Germany, indicates that the US tariffs effectively functioned as a tax on domestic consumption, with the effects falling mainly on US importers and consumers. After analyzing nearly $4 trillion in trade shipments between January 2024 and November 2025, researchers found that foreign exporters absorbed only about 4% of the impact of the tariff increase, while the remaining 96% was borne by businesses and consumers in the US.

Julian Hinz, a professor of economics at Bielefeld University and co-author of the report, said that the roughly $200 billion in additional tariff revenue collected last year “was paid almost exclusively by Americans” and warned that this impact might be more strongly reflected in inflation over the medium term.

The analysis aligns with previous research by the Yale Budget Lab and Harvard Business School economists, which finds that only a small portion of tariff costs was absorbed by foreign producers, while most were passed onto the domestic market.

Although inflation in the US has remained relatively moderate, experts have observed that the effects of tariffs typically unfold gradually, manifesting as higher prices, lower profit margins, and increased costs for importers and retailers.

The report also highlights that tariffs significantly impacted trade volumes, as some exporters chose to cut their shipments to the US rather than lower prices, due to the effect of tariffs on their profit margins.

Researchers note that who bears the cost of tariffs might shift over time as American companies discover new suppliers and international competition grows. However, for now, the main burden of tariff policy continues to fall on the US economy.

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