US-China tariff war: Americans fear ‘Bible-Tax’ as holy book is imported from China

Washington: More than half of the Bibles printed in the world originate in China due to the unique paper and technologies required and the trade war Donald Trump has initiated against China is going to increase the cost to Bible in America.

According to a report the church community  cost of the holy Bible will increase as  it is significantly imported from China.

“The recently proposed tariffs on an additional USD 300 billion in Chinese goods, including printed materials, could have significant negative effects on our religious groups, churches, schools, ministries, and nonprofit organisations,” Harder said.

Unless the Bibles are excluded from the tariffs, churches, religious schools and other organisations would be forced to pay more for the scripture, he said.
The Congressman urged the President to exempt the Bibles printed in China from import duty.
In the letter dated June 25, the Congressman from California expressed his concern regarding tariffs on printed books which would amount to a “Bible tax”.
If printed books, including the Bibles, are not removed from the list of products that could be impacted by tariffs, consumers and religious groups will be forced to pay higher prices for their Bibles, Harder said.
Christian publishers and Bibles societies in the US depend on the capacity and expertise of printers in China to help supply the 20 million Bibles bought each year by Americans, said Stan Jantz, president of the Evangelical Christian Publishers Association.

“A Bible tax would mean fewer Bibles at much higher prices would be available to people who depend on the Bible for their daily spiritual nourishment,” Jantz said.