With President Donald Trump's trade announcements changing by the day, The Conversation talked to Johnson Choi, the president of the Hong Kong-China-Hawaiʻi Chamber of Commerce, about the tit-for-tat tariffs between Trump's hikes and China's 125% retaliation on American goods.
HPR first connected with him during Trump's first term — when the talk was about tariffs on alcohol. Since that time Choi said he got out of the spirits market.
Choi said that the economy could go back to pandemic times when everyone was stocking up on various items and not eating out as much due to uncertainty.
"When people are uncertain, they stop buying, they stop traveling, and they stop eating out, or at least they will eat out less — save money because they don't know what'll happen," he said.
He said that some exporters will not be sending items due to the tariff hike.
"It's true that the boat is not coming in. I mean, it's not like fake news, because I have importers here, and also have exporter in Asia, that our chamber members, they say, 'Are you kidding me? We're not sending it in.' So, of course, they have a problem too, because they're holding to the stock," he told HPR.
Some Chinese exporters are recalling their container ships in response to Trump's tariffs on China, according to Choi. He said that even ships already on the way to the U.S. are being called back due to uncertainty.
"Apparently right now, the attitude of the U.S. government is either my way or highway," he said. "I think the best way to solve this problem is to sit down and talk."
This interview aired on The Conversation on April 14, 2025. The Conversation airs weekdays at 11 a.m.
