AAFA president and CEO Steve Lamar says the results of the January 2022 Consumer Price Index report, which shows apparel prices were up by 5.1% compared to 2021 and footwear by 6.1%, shows the Biden administration needs to alleviate ‘spiralling’ inflation for consumers and the US apparel industry.

“These price increases are not subtle and not sustainable. Consumers are feeling taxed at the register – online and in-store – due to record-setting inflationary pressure,” Lamar notes. “When we say record-fees, this includes both the tariffs – or taxes – the US government charges on imported consumer goods as well as the unjust price gouging that continues to wreak havoc on global supply chains.

“AAFA continues to call on the Biden administration to pursue swift and effective policies to immediately alleviate the increasingly overwhelming costs on companies and address the shipping crisis. Number one, we need to see immediate elimination and refund of punitive Section 301 tariffs on U.S. imports from China. We also need President Biden to engage on negotiations around the soon-to-expire West Coast port labour contract and bring all stakeholders to the table to implement real solutions to the shipping crisis.”

Lamar urges Congress to immediately renew the Generalized System of Preferences (GSP) and the Miscellaneous Tariff Bill (MTB) trade preference programmes and pass the Ocean Shipping Reform Act (OSRA 21).

“This will allow for more oversight of foreign ocean carriers and provide relief for American businesses and American consumers,” he says.

“Congress is making progress on critical American competitiveness legislation, as embodied in the America Competes Act and the Make it in America Act. Provisions in bills in the Senate and the House would protect American companies from price gouging by foreign ocean carriers, improve online accountability and safety, and mitigate inflationary pressures. Until the Biden administration takes action and Congress approves these measures, our members will continue to suffer, and American families will continue to see unprecedented inflation.”

Last week, AAFA welcomed the passage of the America Competes Act which it says will protect consumers from dangerous counterfeits and address the worsening shipping crisis.