HOUSTON – Some Houston-area business owners may face tough decisions on whether to hike prices depending on the impact of sweeping tariffs.
Economists predict grocery prices, especially on perishable food items, will likely go up first in the next one to two months.
That’s why KPRC 2 went to North China Restaurant in the Energy Corridor, a restaurant that purchases perishable food items regularly.
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North China has been in the Houston area for almost 50 years serving authentic Mandarin style Chinese food.
“My grandparents came here in ‘75 and opened this place up behind the Memorial Hermann Hospital in ‘76,” said owner Frederick Wu. “My dad took over in 2001 and we’ve been [at this location] since 2007.”
The restaurant has endured the 2008 recession and the pandemic.
“We were really lucky because petroleum was still pretty good,” said Wu, when asked about the business during the recession. “That industry was booming actually during that time and all of the Energy Corridor is basically that industry."
However, Wu said the pandemic hit their business hard and they had to raise prices.
“We fortunately had a lot of really loyal guests or patrons during that time that just kind of helped us, stuck with us,” said Wu.
Wu said the price of chicken went up 200% during the pandemic and has now gone up 300% since before the pandemic.
The Trump Administration enacted a baseline 10% on imported goods from all foreign countries on April 5.
On Wednesday, a higher reciprocal tariff is set to go into effect on goods from nearly 60 countries.
Wu said the impact from the tariffs could hit his bottom line, like it did during the COVID era.
“We don’t really want to price out our patrons. We also have to take care of our people too,” said Wu. “So, it’s not really a fun thing to be having to toy with that idea."
Some of the biggest imported goods at Wu’s restaurant includes soy sauce, alcohol and take out containers.
Soy sauce at Wu’s business is manufactured in Taiwan, a country hit with a 32% tariff.
Alcoholic beverages like Korean soju are manufactured in South Korea, a country hit with a 25% tariff.
Take out containers are mostly manufactured in China, a country hit with a 54% tariff.
Economists say consumers can see a 20 to 40 percent increase in grocery prices.
“We do not know what to expect,” said Wu. “I haven’t lost sleep over it yet, but I have been thinking about it in all my waking hours. I would just like some stability, because like I said, I don’t want to raise prices on anybody, and I want to keep everybody that’s working for me right now, as well.”
Wu said he’s had customers who’s stuck with them for 40 years and he’s thankful for the support from the community.
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