President Donald Trump threatened to impose a 100% tariff on products from popular toy maker Mattel. The announcement came just days after the company announced it would be raising prices on toys in the United States due to the Trump administration’s tariffs on China.
Trump imposed a 145% tariff on Chinese imports in April 2025. Mattel, which makes Barbie, Hot Wheels, American Girl and other famous toys, produces 40% of its products in China.
On Monday, executives in a conference call said that the company plans to relocate about 500 of those products to other countries as it shifts production away from China. However, Ynon Kriez, chairman and CEO of Mattel, said that it is unlikely the company will move its production from China to the United States. Kriez told CNBC making products in other countries with lower U.S.-imposed tariffs allows them to sell toys at more affordable prices.
When Trump announced his “liberation day” tariffs in April, he said the move would spur more manufacturing and a golden age in the U.S.
What did the president say about Mattel specifically ?
Following news of Mattel’s moves, the president said Thursday, May 8, that if the company wanted to move to another country but not to the U.S., then he would impose a stiff tariff in return.
“I’ve heard [Mattel] said: ‘Well we’re going to go counter, we’re going to try going someplace else,’” Trump told reporters Thursday. “That’s OK, let [Kriez] go, and we’ll put a 100% tariff on his toys, and he won’t sell one toy in the United States, and that’s their biggest market.”
What’s the latest between the Trump administration and China when it comes to tariffs?
The president sent representatives to Switzerland for talks with China this weekend, in an effort to de-escalate the trade war.
“80% Tariff on China seems right,” Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform on Friday, May 9.
He said that would be up to Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, who will be involved in the talks.
What about toy prices?
Right now Mattel estimates that less than 20% of its toys sold in the United States are produced in China and the company plans to lower that percentage by 2026 and 2027, according to Yahoo Finance.
The company said it hopes to keep up to 50% of its products priced at $20 or less, but prices might rise in the U.S.