A routine morning coffee in the United States now averages around $US9.33 ($13), as soaring everyday expenses and new trade tariffs drive up the cost of living for consumers and small business owners alike.
In Lansing, Michigan, delivery driver Nicholas Kolacz pays about $US10 including a tip for his weekly coffee. Earning $US17.50 an hour, he has cut back his visits from multiple times a week to just once on Sundays, calculating discretionary spending against his hourly wages.
Cafe owners point directly to rising operational expenses and trade policies for the spikes. Trisha Kosloski, owner of the Hob Nob cafe in Lansing, notes that coffee bean prices jumped after President Donald Trump introduced blanket tariffs on nations where coffee is grown, alongside tariffs affecting beans roasted in Canada. With delivery and fuel expenses also climbing, she has been forced to pass those increases on to customers, leaving little to no profit margin.
