As President Donald Trump imposes tariffs on imported goods, some companies in Maine only using domestic material still say they will see a rise in costs.
“We’ll probably see some kind of a price increase,” Marc Ferguson with Brant & Cochran. “We’re certainly not going to see price decreases this year.”
Ferguson makes axes in South Portland. He says they’ve made a point to make their product with materials from Maine, and if they can’t find it in Maine, they use materials from within the U.S.
“Since starting our business 10 years ago, we’ve always sourced our steel in the United States,” he said. “The last batch of steel we bought in March cost us 35% more than the steel I picked up in February….this is really due to higher demand and less supply of U.S. steel.”
Kennebec Technologies in Augusta makes parts for medical devices, aerospace companies, and the Department of Defense. The company buys its materials from within the country, but the tariffs will still impact business.
“It really comes down to supply chain,” Barry Doyle, President and CEO, said. “Larger companies are going to be able to hoard the different materials as they bring them in, making the materials less available to smaller companies like us.”