Saxophones How will Tariffs affect Sax Prices?

[Jimmymack]

‘Oh, I wonder where that came from’.

 

[thomsax]

Vietnam is one of the new nominees for new saxophone countries. No movement in Mongolia yet, but its number of skilled mechanics makes it a possibility.

South America is interesting. We still have some saxophones manufacturer in Europe. We need new technology and tools for making saxes. The prices will raise with or without tariffs. The cost for labour, freights .... is raising worldwide.

 

[Dr G]

Vietnam is one of the new nominees for new saxophone countries.

News is that there is now a substantial U.S. tariff on Vietnam. Of course, I heard this last week just as I was shopping in the local outlet mall. It is revelatory to consider how much of our clothes and shoes are made in Vietnam.

 

[Jimmymack]

20% on goods originating in Vietnam and 40% on goods being shipped via Vietnam seems to be the latest, but that was several days ago. It’s claimed that Vietnam will pay the tariff whatever that means. Someone on the radio the other day said that the deal may turn out to be a good one for Vietnam, for some reason that eluded me. It gets more like Alice in Wonderland all the time.

https://www.cnbc.com/2025/07/02/trump-trade-vietnam-deal.html

 

[Dr G]

20% on goods originating in Vietnam and 40% on goods being shipped via Vietnam seems to be the latest, but that was several days ago. It’s claimed that Vietnam will pay the tariff whatever that means. Someone on the radio the other day said that the deal may turn out to be a good one for Vietnam, for some reason that eluded me. It gets more like Alice in Wonderland all the time.

https://www.cnbc.com/2025/07/02/trump-trade-vietnam-deal.html

The Import Price Index indicates that exporting countries are not yet absorbing the cost of tariffs.

 

[Jimmymack]

I always believed that tariffs were paid by the importer rather than the other way round. But then sometimes I've believed as many as six impossible things before breakfast.

I suppose absorbing tariffs really means cutting the price of the goods in the first place. Maybe that’s what Vietnam has agreed to do. I can’t see it catching on. Selling at a loss has always been a poor way to run a business.

 

[Ghr9204]

It gets more like Alice in Wonderland all the time.

But then sometimes I've believed as many as six impossible things before breakfast.

Sometimes the seeming impossibility to follow tariff trends and predictions is likened to Alice Cooper's lyrices in performance...

Urban Dictionary: Lyrices

lyricing: When someone [speaks] to you completely or sparatically in song [lyrics] [without you] knowing

www.urbandictionary.com

Alice Cooper | Biography, Songs, Albums, & Facts | Britannica

Alice Cooper, American rock musician who pioneered a theatrical form of heavy metal music performance that fused horror dramatics with a raw dynamic sound and that eventually earned him the sobriquet ‘the godfather of shock rock.’ Learn more about his life, music, stage shows, and career.

www.britannica.com

 

[Targa]

20% on goods originating in Vietnam and 40% on goods being shipped via Vietnam seems to be the latest, but that was several days ago. It’s claimed that Vietnam will pay the tariff whatever that means. Someone on the radio the other day said that the deal may turn out to be a good one for Vietnam, for some reason that eluded me. It gets more like Alice in Wonderland all the time.

https://www.cnbc.com/2025/07/02/trump-trade-vietnam-deal.html

Well every film about Vietnam did feature White Rabbit.

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pnJM_jC7j_4&list=RDpnJM_jC7j_4&start_radio=1

 

[Dr G]

I always believed that tariffs were paid by the importer rather than the other way round. But then sometimes I've believed as many as six impossible things before breakfast.

I suppose absorbing tariffs really means cutting the price of the goods in the first place. Maybe that’s what Vietnam has agreed to do. I can’t see it catching on. Selling at a loss has always been a poor way to run a business.

You are correct, tariffs are paid by the importer. Some in the news like to suggest otherwise. You are also correct that the only way for retail prices not to go up is either for the exporter to lower their prices or for the importer to eat the cost of the tariffs. Given the slim profit margins of much of today's economy, that is not sustainable for most.

Who is pocketing the tariffs? I don't see my taxes going down.

 

[Pete Thomas]

Who is pocketing the tariffs? I don't see my taxes going down.

Best not to go there 😉

 

[Jimmymack]

Best not to go there 😉

That's a shame I was just about to.

 

[ESJohn]

I know this borders politics, but just fyi:

https://www.reuters.com/business/trumps-tariff-collections-expected-grow-june-us-budget-data-2025-07-11/

(Pete, feel free to delete this if it crosses the line. No offense will be taken.)

 

[Tuppertn]

Tariffs are levied by the government of the country that's importing the goods. They are paid (to the government) by the individual or company that's doing the importing (not by the country the goods are coming from). So, how tariffs affect saxophone prices depends on where the horn is ultimately coming from and where it's going.

The overall affect is that an increase in the import tariff increases the price of bringing the horn to market. If someone in the supply chain doesn't take it as a loss, then the end consumer covers the cost as a higher retail price.

The hope, from the government's standpoint (aside from filling the state coffers), is that the higher retail price will drive consumers away from the imported product and into a domestic alternative that is now (artificially) more competitive. Domestic manufacturers become happy as sales go up, foreign manufacturers become sad as sales go down.

For the US, at least, this works well for things like automobiles--expensive, high demand items. US auto companies would have folded years ago were it not for 1) the explosive increase in the sale of debt surrounding the purchase and 2) import tariffs increasing the price of the foreign competition. Unfortunately, modern automobiles aren't completely made in one country so domestic prices go up along with the price of foreign made parts. Darn it.

It's not going to work for saxophones in the US because there is no domestic alternative and there isn't enough demand to create one. We're just going to pay higher prices and there's no way to quantify that until it all settles down in a year or so.

 

[Dr G]

Tariffs are levied by the government of the country that's importing the goods. They are paid (to the government) by the individual or company that's doing the importing (not by the country the goods are coming from). So, how tariffs affect saxophone prices depends on where the horn is ultimately coming from and where it's going.

The overall affect is that an increase in the import tariff increases the price of bringing the horn to market. If someone in the supply chain doesn't take it as a loss, then the end consumer covers the cost as a higher retail price.

The hope, from the government's standpoint (aside from filling the state coffers), is that the higher retail price will drive consumers away from the imported product and into a domestic alternative that is now (artificially) more competitive. Domestic manufacturers become happy as sales go up, foreign manufacturers become sad as sales go down.

For the US, at least, this works well for things like automobiles--expensive, high demand items. US auto companies would have folded years ago were it not for 1) the explosive increase in the sale of debt surrounding the purchase and 2) import tariffs increasing the price of the foreign competition. Unfortunately, modern automobiles aren't completely made in one country so domestic prices go up along with the price of foreign made parts. Darn it.

Thanks for that synopsis. Some things are just going to take a while to ramp up production in the US. Pineapples and mangoes, for example, need the right temperature. Climate change may be the correct answer.

 

[LostCircuits]

Thanks for that synopsis. Some things are just going to take a while to ramp up production in the US. Pineapples and mangoes, for example, need the right temperature. Climate change may be the correct answer.

But potato yields are tanking, they need to cool off to about 60F / 13C at night and that's becoming a problem. It's all shifting North. One giveth, one taketh.

 

[Dr G]

But potato yields are tanking, they need to cool off to about 60F / 13C at night and that's becoming a problem. It's all shifting North. One giveth, one taketh.

I guess we need to get along with Canada. Oops.

 

[LostCircuits]

I guess we need to get along with Canada. Oops.

Sorry, I was leading the witness ...

 

[Woodpad]

But potato yields are tanking, they need to cool off to about 60F / 13C at night and that's becoming a problem. It's all shifting North. One giveth, one taketh.

The Canadian Krista Shaw is already made an international advisor with the World Potato Congress (WPC).

 

[LostCircuits]

The Canadian Krista Shaw is already made an international advisor with the World Potato Congress (WPC).

It can all be resolved with the crypto potato coin. Easily movable in any direction.

 

[Dr G]

It can all be resolved with the crypto potato coin. Easily movable in any direction.

Mmmm, low-everything Crypto Crisps. They may be expensive but they’re tasteless!.