Tariff

A tariff is a tax that a government places on goods imported from other countries. When you buy a foreign product, tariffs increase its price—the cost gets passed along to you, the consumer. You'll hear about tariffs in the news because they affect everything from car prices to groceries, and they can spark trade tensions between nations. Tariffs are also a tool governments use to protect their own industries: for example, if Country A puts a 25% tariff on steel from Country B, it makes foreign steel more expensive, encouraging people to buy domestic steel instead. Companies that rely on imported materials often see their profits squeezed when tariffs rise.