Florida is breaking export records, but its enormous exposure to global trade is also making businesses and households particularly vulnerable to higher import costs.
By Marcos A. Tejeda
Publisher & Editor-in-Chief
The Sun Post News
September 7, 2026
Florida has become one of America’s most important gateways to the global economy.
Its seaports receive goods from virtually every continent. Its airports connect businesses with Latin America and the Caribbean. Its highways and distribution centers move imported products throughout the Southeast, while tens of thousands of Florida companies sell goods to customers around the world.
But the same global connections that have helped fuel Florida’s economic expansion are now exposing the state to another side of international trade: tariffs.
A recent estimate places Florida’s cumulative tariff burden since the beginning of 2025 at nearly $12 billion, making it one of the most heavily affected states in the country. That amounts to approximately $1,279 per Florida household when the statewide economic burden is distributed across households.
That figure should not be interpreted as a literal $1,279 bill received by every family. It is a way of illustrating the scale of the estimated economic cost.
The more important question is this:
Who ultimately pays for tariffs?
The answer leads from Florida’s ports and warehouses to small businesses—and eventually to consumers.
FLORIDA HAS A LOT AT STAKE
To understand the potential impact, consider the size of Florida’s international economy.
Florida businesses exported approximately $78.9 billion in goods in 2025, a record for the state and an increase of roughly $6.4 billion, or 8.9%, compared with 2024.
When imports and exports are combined, Florida’s two-way merchandise trade reached approximately $205 billion.
Florida was also the sixth-largest goods-exporting state in the United States.
Nearly 50,100 companies exported goods from Florida in 2024, and approximately 94% of those exporters were small and medium-sized businesses.
Those smaller companies accounted for more than half of Florida’s merchandise exports.
That is an important distinction.
International trade in Florida is not exclusively the territory of multinational corporations.
Thousands of small businesses depend on it.
CENTRAL FLORIDA IS PART OF THE STORY
Orlando and Osceola County may be hundreds of miles from the giant container terminals of South Florida, but Central Florida is deeply connected to the global economy.
The Orlando-Kissimmee-Sanford metropolitan area exported approximately $4.6 billion in goods in 2024.
Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach dominated the state with approximately $46.9 billion in exports, while Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater recorded about $8.5 billion and Jacksonville approximately $2.8 billion.
Central Florida businesses therefore participate in an international supply chain that is much larger than many consumers realize.
A company in Kissimmee may purchase equipment manufactured in Asia, sell products imported from Latin America, operate vehicles containing foreign-made components and hire contractors whose materials come through international supply chains.
A tariff can travel through every step of that system.
WHO ACTUALLY PAYS A TARIFF?
This is where one of the biggest misconceptions surrounding tariffs appears.
When the United States imposes a tariff on an imported product, the foreign government does not simply write a check to the U.S. Treasury.
The tariff is collected in the United States on imported merchandise.
What happens next becomes an economic negotiation.
An importer may absorb some of the additional cost.
It may demand lower prices from its foreign supplier.
It may accept a smaller profit margin.
Or it may increase the price charged to distributors, retailers and customers.
In reality, the burden can be distributed across several participants in the supply chain.
That is also why consumers may not immediately notice the effect.
Businesses can continue selling inventory purchased before tariffs increased. Only when that inventory must be replaced at a higher cost does the new pricing begin moving through the economy.
FOOD IS ONE OF THE BIGGEST PRESSURE POINTS
One particularly important part of the Florida estimate involves food.
Approximately $2 billion of the state’s estimated tariff burden is connected to food and beverages, making it the largest individual category in the analysis.
That matters because food is not an optional household expense.
Consumers can postpone buying a television.
They can keep a vehicle another year.
They can delay remodeling a kitchen.
They cannot stop buying groceries.
Higher costs involving imported foods, ingredients, packaging, fertilizer, machinery or transportation can eventually move through the supply chain and contribute to higher retail prices.
For Florida families already facing substantial housing, insurance and transportation expenses, even relatively small increases can create additional pressure on household budgets.
CONSTRUCTION IS ANOTHER SECTOR TO WATCH
Florida continues to build.
Homes, hotels, warehouses, roads, commercial developments and major infrastructure projects remain essential to the state’s economy.
That makes the cost of steel, aluminum, electrical equipment, machinery and other imported components particularly important.
Florida had approximately 658,400 construction jobs in July, slightly above the level recorded a year earlier.
Persistent increases in material costs could eventually affect construction budgets, renovation projects and new developments.
For a homeowner, that can mean a more expensive repair.
For a small business, it can mean a higher cost to build or renovate a location.
For a developer, relatively modest increases across hundreds of units can alter the economics of an entire project.
FLORIDA’S PORTS ARE AN ECONOMIC CIRCULATORY SYSTEM
Florida has 16 active public seaports.
State transportation officials estimate that Florida’s ports support approximately 1.2 million jobs and generate nearly $196 billion in economic value.
Florida is simultaneously investing heavily in port infrastructure through projects designed to expand capacity, rehabilitate berths, improve container handling and strengthen connections between ports, highways and rail systems.
That infrastructure gives Florida an enormous competitive advantage.
But it also helps explain why disruptions in international commerce can have an outsized effect on the state.
The same network that makes Florida a global trading powerhouse makes it sensitive to sudden changes in trade costs.
THERE IS ANOTHER SIDE TO THE STORY: FLORIDA IS EXPORTING AT RECORD LEVELS
Tariffs represent risk, but Florida’s international position also creates opportunity.
Florida exported a record $78.9 billion in merchandise during 2025, representing growth of approximately 37.8% compared with 2018.
About 92% of Florida-origin exports were manufactured products.
Among the state’s leading exports were approximately:
$12.8 billion in civilian aircraft and parts.
$5.7 billion in telephones.
$3.6 billion in pharmaceutical products.
$2.4 billion in turbojets and gas turbines.
$2.4 billion in automobiles.
Brazil was Florida’s largest international export market, followed by Canada, Mexico, Germany and Colombia.
South America, Central America and the Caribbean collectively purchased approximately $34.4 billion in goods exported from Florida during 2025.
That relationship is especially significant for Florida’s Hispanic business community.
Geography, language, culture and longstanding commercial relationships give Florida businesses a natural advantage in serving markets throughout Latin America and the Caribbean.
THE LABOR MARKET IS HOLDING—BUT GROWTH IS MODEST
Florida’s broader economy remains resilient, although there are signs of slower momentum.
The state had approximately 10.04 million nonfarm jobs in July, about 0.4% more than a year earlier.
Florida’s unemployment rate stood at approximately 4.6%.
Some industries continued to expand, while others weakened.
Construction remained relatively strong. Professional and business services posted modest growth.
Financial activities, however, had approximately 2% fewer jobs than a year earlier, while the information sector also showed a decline.
Florida is therefore not facing an economy in collapse.
But neither is it operating without significant headwinds.
Businesses are navigating higher costs, trade uncertainty, expensive financing and increasingly price-conscious consumers.
INTEREST RATES ADD ANOTHER LAYER OF UNCERTAINTY
The national economy has added another complication.
The latest U.S. employment report showed 162,000 jobs added in August, while unemployment remained at 4.1%.
A stronger-than-expected labor market could make the Federal Reserve more cautious about lowering interest rates if inflation remains elevated.
For Florida, interest rates matter enormously.
Higher rates mean more expensive mortgages.
They increase borrowing costs for businesses.
They make vehicle financing more expensive.
And they place additional pressure on companies that depend on credit to expand, purchase equipment or maintain working capital.
The next inflation reports will therefore be closely watched before the Federal Reserve’s September meeting.
WHAT SHOULD FLORIDA BUSINESS OWNERS DO?
For small-business owners, tariffs should not be treated simply as a political debate taking place in Washington.
They are a cost-management issue.
Companies should identify which products, equipment and raw materials depend on imports; review supplier contracts; compare domestic and international alternatives; evaluate inventory strategies and determine how much additional cost can be absorbed before prices must change.
Businesses should also avoid becoming overly dependent on a single supplier whenever alternatives exist.
Cash flow becomes particularly important during periods of uncertainty.
But Florida entrepreneurs should also consider the other side of international trade: exporting.
If nearly 50,000 Florida businesses already sell merchandise internationally—and most of them are small or medium-sized companies—foreign markets are clearly not reserved for corporate giants.
For some Florida businesses, the next growth opportunity may be outside the United States.
THE SUN POST ANALYSIS
Florida’s economy is experiencing a remarkable contradiction.
The state is setting export records and strengthening its position as one of America’s leading international commercial gateways.
At the same time, that global integration leaves Florida particularly exposed when the cost of international trade rises.
The nearly $12 billion estimate must be interpreted carefully. It does not represent a direct bill sent to Florida households, nor does it mean every dollar automatically became consumer inflation.
But it does illustrate the enormous scale of a trade policy whose consequences can travel through businesses, supply chains and household budgets.
The real story is not confined to Washington.
It is found in the contractor discovering that materials cost more.
It is found in the retailer deciding whether to increase prices.
It is found in the restaurant trying to protect already-thin margins.
It is found in the family realizing that the same paycheck buys less.
And there is another side.
It is also found in the Florida entrepreneur discovering that a customer in Brazil, Colombia, Mexico or Europe can become the next source of growth.
Florida possesses an economic advantage few states can match:
It is simultaneously a major consumer market, a logistics platform and an international gateway.
The question for the months ahead is whether Florida can use that strength to turn global trade uncertainty into opportunity—or whether rising costs will ultimately leave businesses and families with an even larger bill.
