Tariffs 101: Why women's products cost more
Did you know that women's clothing and personal care products are often priced higher than men's? It's been that way for years and there's even a name for it. Pink Tax. Now with Trump implementing widespread tariffs, how will this impact women's goods and jobs?
This week on Now You Know, we talk to Prachi Agarwal, a research fellow at the International Economic Development Group at ODI Global. She focuses on trade policy and women in trade, explaining how tariffs work and why they disproportionately impact women.
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Meanwhile, annual deficits – when state spending exceeds tax revenues – would rise to 6.9 percent of GDP from about 6.4 percent in 2024. So far, Trump's attempts to lower spending through Elon Musk's Department of Government Efficiency have fallen short of expectations. And though import tariffs have raised revenue for the government, they've been paid for – in the form of higher costs – by American consumers. The upshot is that Trump's unpredictable policies, which prompted Moody's rating agency to strip the US government of its top credit score in May, have slowed US growth prospects this year and dented the demand for its currency. The dollar has also trended down on expectations that the Federal Reserve will cut interest rates to support the United States' economy, urged on by Trump, with two to three reductions expected by the end of this year, according to levels implied by futures contracts. Is the US becoming a 'less attractive' destination? 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Billionaire Elon Musk said on Monday that he would form a new political party in the United States if a Republican-leaning Congress passes President Donald Trump's 'One Big Beautiful Bill', which proposes tax breaks and funding cuts for healthcare and food programmes. Musk has voiced criticism of the bill on multiple occasions over the past month and began suggesting the idea of the new party on social media starting early June. Here is more about Musk's reservations about the bill, and about his new proposed party. What has Musk said about the America Party? Musk has been saying that if the bill is passed, Republicans are no different from Democrats, who are often accused by conservatives of being profligate with spending taxpayers' dollars. The version of the bill that the Senate is discussing at the moment, if passed by both chambers of Congress, would expand the national debt by $3.3 trillion between 2025 and 2034. The current US national debt stands at more than $36 trillion. 'If this insane spending bill passes, the America Party will be formed the next day,' Musk posted on his social media platform, X, on Monday. 'Our country needs an alternative to the Democrat-Republican uniparty so that the people actually have a VOICE.' In an earlier post, Musk wrote: 'It is obvious with the insane spending of this bill, which increases the debt ceiling by a record FIVE TRILLION DOLLARS that we live in a one-party country – the PORKY PIG PARTY!!' The debt ceiling, set by the US Congress, determines the upper limit to the amount of money that the US Treasury can borrow. The current debt limit is $36.1 trillion. Why does Musk oppose the bill? Once a key aide and major campaign donor for Trump, Musk had a public online falling out with the president in June over his criticism of the bill. On June 3, Musk wrote on X: 'I'm sorry, but I just can't stand it anymore. This massive, outrageous, pork-filled Congressional spending bill is a disgusting abomination.' Musk alleged that Trump was linked to disgraced financier Jeffrey Epstein in a now-deleted post on X. However, Trump and Musk seemed to have reached a detente when Trump told reporters that he wished Musk well while the latter wrote on X on June 11 that he had gone 'too far' in his criticism of the US president. However, since then, Musk has argued in a series of online posts that the bill would increase the debt ceiling, 'bankrupt America', and 'destroy millions of jobs in America'. Musk owns the electric vehicle (EV) manufacturer Tesla. The current version of the bill, with amendments made by the Senate, seeks to end the tax credit for purchases of EVs worth up to $7,500, starting on September 30. This could reduce the consumer demand for EVs in the US. What is the America Party that Musk proposed? On June 5, Musk posted a poll on his X account, asking his followers: 'Is it time to create a new political party in America that actually represents the 80 percent in the middle?' While social media polls are known to be nonrepresentative of broader public sentiment, 5.6 million people voted on the poll, and 80.4 percent responded with 'yes'. Since then, Musk has repeatedly reposted the poll result, citing it as evidence that most Americans want a new party to be formed. 'Musk believes that 80 percent of Americans are unhappy with the two major parties and are not being represented,' Natasha Lindstaedt, a professor at the Department of Government, the University of Essex, told Al Jazeera. While that number might not reflect the wider American public, it does point to a trend in the electorate; according to a Gallup poll from 2024, 43 percent of Americans identified as independent, 28 percent identified as Republican and 28 percent identified as Democrat. In other words, more Americans identify as independent than as either Democrat or Republican. One of Musk's followers replied to a post on X with an image with the text 'America Party'. The world's richest man responded: ''America Party' has a nice ring to it. The party that actually represents America!' How real is Musk's threat? Experts say Musk, whose net worth is $363bn as of Monday according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index, would realistically be able to fund a third party in the US. However, it is still unclear whether he would go ahead with his plan or whether his party would have a significant effect on US elections. 'Musk certainly has the financial power to back a third party that could be very disruptive to the Republican Party, but it's not certain if Musk will take on this risk,' Lindstaedt said. Lindstaedt recalled how earlier this month, Musk backed down from his criticism of Trump on X. 'If we take him at his word, he could spend hundreds of millions on this project,' she added. 'Musk has been ramping up his criticism of the bill lately, and he may find specific legislators [particularly from the House] would be willing to defect if their constituencies are more negatively affected by Trump's policies,' Lindstaedt said, referring to the House of Representatives. 'He will also have the attention of fiscal hawks in particular.' Lindstaedt added that among American voters, there is a 'huge appetite' for a third party. 'The bill will leave the US spending hundreds of billions just in the interest, and the more Americans understand this, the more they may want to flock to something different. US public frustration with the traditional parties is at an all-time high, and Musk may be able to capitalise on this.' However, Thomas Gift, an associate professor of political science in the UCL School of Public Policy in London, said it was unclear whether Musk is serious and suggested that the barriers to breaking the Republican-Democrat duopoly are hard to scale for anyone. 'This is Elon Musk bluffing,' he told Al Jazeera. 'He knows as well as anyone that the power of party machines behind Democrats and Republicans is too much to surmount.' Gift added that while forming a party is possible, 'winning seats in Congress or the White House is another matter entirely'. 'At best, a third party will have little impact on US elections; at worst, it will play 'spoiler', taking votes from one of the two parties and de facto giving it to another.' What has Trump said about Musk? On Monday, Trump posted on his Truth Social platform, saying: 'Elon Musk knew, long before he so strongly Endorsed me for President, that I was strongly against the EV Mandate. Electric cars are fine, but not everyone should be forced to own one.' Trump added: 'Without subsidies, Elon would probably have to close up shop and head back home to South Africa. No more Rocket launches, Satellites, or Electric Car Production, and our Country would save a FORTUNE.' 'Perhaps we should have DOGE take a good, hard, look at this? BIG MONEY TO BE SAVED!!!' Trump wrote, referring to the Department of Government Efficiency, an advisory body aimed at boosting government efficiency and upgrading Information Technology, that Musk formed and led at the start of Trump's second administration, before leaving on May 30.
