The U.S. government is increasing tariffs on a variety of Chinese products worth tens of billions of dollars. They have been billed as part of ongoing efforts to protect American factories and include an increase of tariffs on exam/medical-grade nitrile gloves from the current 7.5% to 50% on January 1, 2025 with a further increase to 100% on January 1, 2026.
Considering this news, we continue to receive questions from our customers and partners, which prompted us to summarize the five most frequent:
I’ve heard about upcoming tariffs on disposable gloves. Can you tell me more?
The office of the U.S. Trade Representative recently released an update that increases tariffs on medical- and exam-grade nitrile disposable gloves. It explicitly increases medical/exam glove tariffs from the current rate of 7.5% to 50% starting January 1, 2025, and then to 100% starting January 1, 2026.
Does AMMEX buy medical/exam gloves from China?
AMMEX buys most of our nitrile exam/medical gloves from Malaysia and Thailand. We expect to move all our medical/exam-grade glove production to SE Asian manufacturers to avoid the tariff increase on gloves from China.
How will the tariff on exam/medical gloves from China impact the market for other disposable glove categories such as industrial nitrile, vinyl, latex, etc.?
It’s too early to tell, but we expect costs for all nitrile gloves to increase across all market sources. For now, we don’t anticipate price increases on latex and vinyl. We expect the demand for latex and vinyl to remain stable. Nitrile continues to be the dominant glove material in the market.
When do you anticipate the impact on nitrile glove prices?
The timing is unclear, as most disposable glove orders are placed several months in advance. Plus, production capacity and inventory levels vary across industry sources. We expect prices for all nitrile gloves to increase, and the AMMEX team in SE Asia is working with factories to calculate the precise impact. We will keep you informed on the timing.
How will tariffs impact your inventory levels?
AMMEX is in a strong inventory position to continue with our commitment of providing clients with 98% fill rates. We continue to increase inventory safety stocks and move all nitrile glove production out of China.
As you may know, industrial-grade disposable gloves made in China already carry a 25% tariff for imports to the United States. With the upcoming presidential election in November, and continued focus on Chinese imports, the topic of tariffs is likely to come up again and again.
Check out our Q4 Disposable Glove Market Update.