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Ralph Jennings

Oakland Chinatown, one of the oldest in the United States, almost feels as lively as Hong Kong on a busy afternoon. Shoppers squeeze along narrow pavements lined with hanging lanterns and sacks of oranges, while a variety store welcomes customers with racks of clothing and slippers.
While many of the shoppers are Chinese, a considerable number could come from anywhere – a sign that Chinatown draws people from the wider San Francisco Bay Area.
Despite signs of a recovery since the Covid-19 pandemic and a concurrent wave of anti-Asian violence, businesses report that tariff-induced price hikes on their goods this year – ranging from 20 to 50 per cent – have stalled growth in the 170-year-old district, founded by early Cantonese immigrants.
Some of the nearly 300 merchants in the 35-square-block district acknowledge a steady stream of customers – but note that spending has dropped on the likes of ginseng, dried mushrooms, tea leaves and furniture imported from China.
A-li Huang, who has run Long Fa supermarket for 29 years, said costs have risen by an average of 50 per cent due to the tariffs. Customers keep coming but buy less to save money, she said.
“If you used to buy three cans of something, now you buy two,” Huang said from her pavement perch surrounded by tubs of green vegetables and elaborately packaged foods.
Around the corner, Tian Yuan Trading has raised prices on Chinese medicines by about 20 per cent because of the tariffs, employee Tina Wen said. “You see how quiet it is out there,” she added, gesturing to the empty interior of her shop.
It’s really difficult doing business overseas, especially with China. There’s some really weird, wonky stuff going on.
George Chen, board member of the San Francisco Chamber of Commerce
Across the bay in San Francisco, home to the country’s single oldest Chinatown, merchants also face price hikes, said George Chen, board member of the San Francisco Chamber of Commerce.
His Chinatown restaurant-store complex, China Live, has paid more for Chinese furniture, a special type of construction brick, dried mushrooms and loose-leaf tea, Chen said. To offset the tariffs, the three-storey, high-end complex has already raised tea prices.
“It’s really difficult doing business overseas, especially with China,” he said, calling this year’s US tariff rules hard to predict. “There’s some really weird, wonky stuff going on.”
US President Donald Trump had raised tariffs on China in waves since February before suspending the steepest duties in early May for 90 days, pending further negotiations with Beijing.
On July 8, Morgan Stanley estimated that the weighted average US tariff rate on Chinese imports stood at 42 per cent – and could rise even higher unless the two countries reach a deal by mid-August.
Negotiators from both countries are set to meet in Sweden for a new round of talks next week.

The Oakland Chinatown Chamber of Commerce has invested time and money to help merchants prosper since Covid-19.
Local businesses have increased their profits this year by accepting cashless payments, extending operating hours – early store closures were a hallmark of the pandemic – and launching pop-up stores, sometimes just for a weekend, to test new business initiatives, said Carl Chan, a member of the Oakland Chinatown Chamber of Commerce’s board of directors.
To attract a wider clientele, Chan has even urged restaurants to diversify their menus beyond traditional Cantonese cuisine – a staple for the district.
“We have to find ways to promote our businesses,” he said.
Last year, California rolled back a 2014 law that had reduced felony punishments for property crimes involving losses under US$950 – a change that has helped deter burglars from targeting Chinatown, Chan added.
In July, the chamber also opposed a non-profit group’s plan to convert a 162-room hotel next to Chinatown into a residence for homeless people, warning city officials that elderly shoppers would be scared to go out if the project went ahead. The non-profit scrapped its plan on July 9.
“No big things have happened but little things do, and you have to face that,” said Chen Hongli, a Guangdong province native who has run a variety store in Chinatown for 27 years.


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The streets brim with life after a challenging pandemic – but business owners warn tariffs threaten profit margins


The streets brim with life after a challenging pandemic – but business owners warn tariffs threaten profit margins.


Landmark US Chinatown survived Covid, anti-Asian violence – but tariffs pose new threat

.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}The streets brim with life after a challenging pandemic – but business owners warn tariffs threaten profit margins

The streets brim with life after a challenging pandemic – but business owners warn tariffs threaten profit margins