When Trade Wars Turn Personal: The Toll of “Pink Tariffs” on Women in the Economy.
An article about why the newest front in global trade isn’t only fought in Congress, boardrooms, or ports, but in the homes, businesses, and communities of women around the world.
By Devry Boughner Vorwerk, Founder & CEO, DevryBV Sustainable Strategies
The Hidden Tax in Global Trade.
Trade wars may be waged by nations, but their costs are carried by women. The new tariffs dominating global headlines are not abstract economic instruments—they are daily disruptions that touch dinner tables, storefronts, and factory floors. Women, in particular, feel the strain. Across supply chains and local economies, women shoulder the invisible costs of protectionist trade policies. The term that has taken hold to describe the negative impact is “Pink Tariffs,” which are the trade equivalent of the “Pink Tax,” a noticeable surcharge on being female in the marketplace where women pay more than men for the equivalent products and services (e.g., dry cleaning, personal care items, undergarments, haircuts, etc.).
Raising tariffs have negative consequences for women in the global supply chain.
Ed Gresser, a well-known trade economist and expert on the inequity of the tariff system, provides a tangible example from the trade world: placing higher tariffs on women’s clothes than on directly analogous men’s clothes, costing American women at least $2.5 billion per year. (Progressive Policy Institute, March 2025)
As Rebecca van Bergen, Founder and CEO of Nest, who we interviewed on Pink Tariffs, describes the situation. “While tariffs impact all people, it is important to recognize the specific impacts that tariffs have on women. Pink tariffs allow us to do that – to not only see the global ramifications of these policies, but to also identify how women are being uniquely affected…It is imperative that we are concerned and monitoring the impact that these global policies are having on entire communities.” Nest is an example of an organization that has worked extensively to include artisans—the majority of whom are women—into the complex global supply chain, partnering with companies such as Target, Anthropologie, and Williams Sonoma.
To learn more about Nest and Rebecca’s work, check out our Q&A, where we explore the challenges and opportunities of the artisan sector in greater depth.
Pink Tariffs require greater attention in the current trade policy debate because women are taking the brunt of the supply chain disruptions. As such, in March 2025, U.S. Representatives Lizzie Fletcher and Brittany Pettersen introduced the Pink Tariffs Study Act. The Act directs the Treasury Department to conduct a formal study of the U.S. tariff system for gender bias and regressivity.
Supporting women in the economy should be a bipartisan issue. Why? Because when import duties climb on products made for women or in industries staffed by women, inequality deepens. Wages fall. Prices rise. Progress reverses, all because there is still no critical mass of awareness—or will—to shape trade policy in ways that reflect its unequal impact on women.
When Trade Turns Personal.
My first real “a-ha” moment about trade discrimination against women came in 2002 while working at the U.S. Trade Representative’s Office in Washington, D.C. There, I encountered one of the most sophisticated trade negotiators I’ve ever met, Katrin Kuhlmann. I was in awe of her ability to negotiate with foreign governments, such as Russia, and hold them accountable on trade rules. When Katrin took the courageous move to leave her role at USTR to found a nonprofit dedicated to supporting women in the supply chain, I remember looking to her as a role model for what could be done to support women in trade—someone who saw clearly that opportunity through trade liberalization alone wasn’t enough without intentional support, capacity building, financing, and inclusion of women in the marketplace.
Katrin’s leadership is among the lineage of numerous women I admire like Arancha González, who steered the International Trade Centre and launched the “SheTrades” initiative, seeking to connect one million women entrepreneurs to markets by 2020; and Monica Hardy Whaley, who leads the National Center for APEC and who has tirelessly advanced women’s participation in APEC economies for years; and the Women in International Trade (WIIT), which gathers women trade leaders across business, government, and non-profit to elevate women in the trade agenda. Together, all these trade warrior women remind us that trade policy is not gender-neutral, and that inclusion must be consistently addressed—not assumed.
The Gender Divide in Global Trade.
The World Bank and the World Trade Organization have found that input tariffs are often highest in sectors that employ a higher proportion of women, including textiles, agriculture, and food retail (World Bank Blog, 2023). In Bangladesh, for example, higher duties on livestock feed—a sector that employs many women—have resulted in lower wages and slower economic recovery compared to male-dominated crop sectors (World Bank working paper, 2023).
What looks like a neutral trade policy is, in practice, a regressive tax on women’s labor and livelihoods.
Tariffs create economics divide for women.
Women make up the majority of the world’s producers of food, fabric, and household essentials.
60–80% of food in developing countries is grown by women, yet they earn only 82 cents for every dollar men earn in agricultural labor (UNFAO, The status of women in agrifood systems).
36% of all working women are employed in agrifood systems—but their share is falling as global disruptions tighten margins (UNFAO).
In Lesotho alone, over 30,000 women lost factory jobs this year when 50% tariffs on U.S. apparel imports took effect (Claire Cozens, Foreign Policy, The Crisis for Women Who Make Your Clothes).
When tariffs rise, women at every tier of the supply chain—farmers, factory workers, artisans, innovators, traders, boutique owners, service providers—see their already-thin margins collapse. And when women’s incomes fall, the welfare of their children, families, and communities fall with them: less nutritious food, less access to essential goods, fewer school fees paid, smaller savings cushions, less taxes paid, etc.
Over the decades, research from institutions such as the World Bank and World Trade Organization, has consistently shown that when women control household income, a higher share goes to children’s health, food, and education. These studies demonstrate that the stakes of trade policy are measured not only in terms of GDP but also in the well-being of families and vulnerable communities.
““Trade wars may be waged by nations, but their costs are carried by women.” ”
The Consumer Side of the Pink Tariffs.
Tariffs don’t just hit women as workers—they follow them into the checkout line.
A Cambridge University study of 167 countries found that women’s apparel faces tariffs 0.7% higher on average than men’s. In the U.S., that difference costs female consumers $2.5 billion annually, as tariff-driven price disparities stretch from clothing and shoes to basic personal-care goods (Gresser, March 2025)
Women are the primary purchasers of food for the household. For example, when I served in leadership at a mobile food delivery company in 2020, I was surprised to find that 75 percent of the customers on the purchasing platform were women. Recent statistics from Capital One shopping research in August of 2025 indicate:
78.2% of women claim to be their household’s primary food shopper.
In households where a spouse/partner and children are present, 80% of women perform most of the grocery shopping.
68% of married or partnered women with no children at home are the primary household grocery shoppers.
From luxury items to everyday essentials, women are facing higher prices. And because women make most household purchasing decisions, these price penalties pile up across the family budget. Unfortunately for local businesses, less discretionary spending results in fewer local purchases at retail outlets, cancelling services such as housekeepers and lawn maintenance, eliminating streaming subscriptions, and limiting outings to restaurants, theme parks, sports events, and other local gathering places.
Women truly do power local economies.
Why It Matters.
In all economies, and especially Low- and Middle-Income (LMIC) and least developed countries (LDCs), Pink Tariffs are not a women’s issue—they are an economic stability issue.
Families eat less and worse. Nutritional quality declines first, followed by meal frequency.
Girls leave school earlier. Families cut education expenses when budgets tighten.
Local economies weaken. Small businesses—often run by women—lose customers and creditworthiness.
Every dollar lost to Pink Tariffs in the supply chain echoes through communities, amplifying inequality and undercutting resilience.
From Awareness to Action.
Here are some unsolicited recommendations for those who can take constructive action regarding the current tariff situation.
Policymakers: Audit tariff codes for gender bias, reduce and harmonize rates between men’s and women’s goods. Require gender impact assessments in every trade negotiation and tariff review. Follow models like Canada’s combined product categories to remove embedded bias.
Companies: Trace your supply chains. Identify where women dominate production, depend on trade, and where tariff costs are most harmful. Absorb or offset tariff-driven price hikes instead of passing them through to consumers. Commit to flexible payment terms and accessible financing for women-owned suppliers.
Leaders with Power (Public or Private): Institutionalize change: collect data on women-specific disaggregated production, trade, and business, expand trade-finance guarantees for women-owned firms dependent on trade, and link investment criteria to gender impact.
Women in Business: Women entrepreneurs must lean into collaboration—not isolation. Work directly with your suppliers and customers to explain the impact of tariffs and trade volatility on your operations. Engage government officials at local and national levels to make visible the economic contribution of women-led enterprises. Working together is better than suffering alone. Connect through trade associations, local chambers of commerce, and industry councils. Advocacy begins with connection.
Support women in trade.
What Pink Tariffs Mean for Our Clients and SMEs.
For DevryBV’s clients and the small and medium-sized enterprises we advise, Pink Tariffs are not just a policy issue—they are a leadership test.
Review your tariffs and sourcing. Are you paying or passing along hidden costs to women?
Map supplier diversity. Know where women contribute—on farms, in production, services, logistics, and retail.
Build inclusive procurement policies. Set sourcing targets for women-led suppliers and ensure access to finance.
Elevate women in decision-making. Include women in leadership roles for trade, logistics, and sourcing.
Support women’s voices. Sponsor participation in trade forums and local chambers.
Collaborate across sectors. Stewardship starts with partnership.
Use your platform to speak out against harmful tariffs. Participate in trade dialogues and business coalitions to advocate for equitable trade practices.
Every enterprise, regardless of its size, can contribute to dismantling the barriers that hinder growth and equity. When we focus on helping women through trade, we stabilize economies.
Stewarding a More Resilient Trading System.
Kathy Matsui, former Vice Chair of Goldman Sachs—who, like me, attended Gonzales High School in California—coined the term and implemented the program Womenomics to demonstrate how investing in women drives growth. Not only did Kathy drive a global movement among women, but she was right, and the subsequent metrics she collected and published prove it. Closing gender gaps in productivity and pay could lift global GDP by $1 trillion and reduce food insecurity by 45 million people (UNFAO, 2023).
It’s remarkable that two women from the same small, rural high school in the Salinas Valley would both go on to shape the conversation on women in the global economy. Maybe it’s no coincidence. The Valley is a place where trade isn’t theory; it’s lifeblood. When you grow up surrounded by farm fields, packing houses, and truck and railyards, as well as ports, many of which are powered by women, you learn early that the world moves through trade, and that when those systems break, women and communities feel it first.
That’s why elevating the impact of unnecessary trade wars on women matters. Pink Tariffs aren’t just an unfair price tag—they’re a warning sign of how blind and protectionist trade policy can undermine entire economies of women.
As the global trade community enters a new round of negotiations, leaders must bring women into focus and fully to the table—not as a side note, but as the backbone of the global economy they already sustain.
““As tariffs take hold, enterprises will be under financial strain – these pressures can and will directly impact the lives of workers, from lower wages to longer hours. Transparency and third-party accountability will be more important than ever before.””