Donald Trump’s sweeping international tariffs may raise the price of Bibles - including the president’s branded version of the holy text.
The CEO of HarperCollins Christian Publishing, which describes itself as the U.S.’s largest commercial Bible and Christian book publisher, told The Wall Street Journal that it had been “all hands on deck,” after the president announced the tariffs on Wednesday.
Bibles are typically printed on thin paper stock and with presses that are largely located outside the U.S., according to The Journal.
This includes China, where Trump’s official “God Bless the USA” Bibles are printed.
According to a chart produced as a prop by the president during his announcement, Chinese imports will face a 34 percent “reciprocal” tariff in addition to a pre-existing 20 percent tariff imposed earlier this year, for a total of 54 percent.
There may be more coming, with additional industry-specific tariffs.
Though Trump has never said where his personally branded holy books are printed, or what they cost; a copy hand-signed by the president was previously priced at $1,000. Trump has also not disclosed how much he earns per sale.
However, global trade records previously reviewed by The Associated Press showed that a printing company in China’s eastern city of Hangzhou shipped close to 120,000 of the Bibles to the United States last year.
The estimated value of the three separate shipments was $342,000, or less than $3 per Bible, according to AP, who cited databases that track exports and imports. The minimum price for the Trump-backed Bible is $59.99, putting the potential sales revenue at about $7 million.
It is unclear how such future shipments of the president’s own product would be affected by his international tariffs.
The Independent has reached out to the White House for comment about international Bible shipments, as well as HarperCollins Christian Publishing and the American Bible Society.
