ANDREW LIMBONG, HOST:
Groceries are getting more expensive. In the midst of President Donald Trump's trade war, a family-owned Asian market in Florida might have to close. Nancy Guan from member station WUSF in Tampa visited a shop that has served the community for more than 40 years.
(SOUNDBITE OF CHECKOUT BEEPING)
WONG KAI: Hello. How are you?
UNIDENTIFIED CUSTOMER: Hello. I'm good.
NANCY GUAN, BYLINE: At Wong Kai Imports, the shelves are lined with goods from countries including Vietnam, Thailand, the Philippines and China.
WONG: You have a nice day.
UNIDENTIFIED CUSTOMER: You too.
(SOUNDBITE OF CASH REGISTER CLOSING)
GUAN: For the last 43 years, this was one of the few places in Manatee County shoppers could buy a big bulb of bok choy or a bottle of fish sauce. But lately, Wong says, business has slowed down - way down.
WONG: I talked to a lot of customers. They told me, Mr. Wong, don't close. I said, I'll try, but it's hard.
GUAN: Nearly all of Wong Kai's products are imported from abroad and face steep tariffs. He's struggling to keep prices down to not drive away customers as his costs rise.
WONG: All the suppliers, they're going up 35% across the board. And what are you going to do? I mean, nothing we can do.
GUAN: Take, for example, this sauce used for mapo tofu, a spicy dish from Sichuan, China.
WONG: This mapo tofu, it came in at 2.75 last year. And then, beginning of year, it went up to 3.95. We just had this shipment coming in yesterday. It's $5. I mean, it doesn't make any sense.
GUAN: So it's not getting spicier? It's still the...
WONG: No.
GUAN: ...Same sauce (laughter). OK.
WONG: It's not spicier. You know, everything is - like, it keeps going up.
WONG: Wong says he voted for Donald Trump because he vowed to bring down costs. The president says raising taxes on imported goods would stimulate domestic production, reduce the trade deficit and boost the U.S. economy. But Michael Snipes, an economics professor at the University of South Florida, says it's not that simple.
MICHAEL SNIPES: If we're importing goods, then what that means is that we're not necessarily as good as other places around the world at producing these goods.
GUAN: That's especially true for Wong's products. Add to that the cost of all groceries have gotten more expensive. Since last year, prices for shoppers increased by 2.7%. And while there are several factors at work, like labor shortages and extreme weather, tariffs haven't helped. Of course, Wong knows he's not the only one caught in the middle of this trade war.
WONG: You go to Walmart, you go to Publix, you go to Target, I mean, the prices keep going up.
GUAN: But while those big-box stores are able to absorb some of the cost, it's harder for a small, family-run business like Wong's to stay afloat. News that Wong Kai could go under really dismayed Marilyn McKibben, who comes here to get...
MARILYN MCKIBBEN: Everything - like rice, vegetable...
GUAN: Or like when she makes the Filipino soup sinigang.
MCKIBBEN: I need sampalok.
GUAN: It's a five-minute drive to Wong Kai to pick up sampalok, a tree fruit also known as tamarind. The higher prices haven't pushed McKibben away.
MCKIBBEN: It's very convenient on me, you know? That's why I'm so sad.
GUAN: Wong immigrated from Hong Kong decades ago. He says with hard work, he carved out a living that no longer has a future.
WONG: Is that American dream? I don't think so.
GUAN: Business just hasn't been the same for a while now, and this year feels like a tipping point. For NPR News, I'm Nancy Guan in Tampa. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
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