K.C. Conway, Chief Economist with CCIM and Director of the Alabama Center for Real Estate, appears on America’s Commercial Real Estate Show with host Michael to discuss his opinions and thoughts regarding tariffs, the economic cycle, and how they may or may not impact the commercial real estate market. He discusses the devastating effect the last major trade wars, effectuated via the Smoot-Hawley Tariff Act of 1930, had on the economy. He doesn’t believe the tariffs are negative for commercial real estate. He believes the tariffs will likely accelerate some retailer bankruptcies in situations where they can’t pass along higher costs due to tariffs. With regard to construction costs, he submits that hurricane related rebuilding is the bigger issue bringing higher costs. He believes the biggest risk to the economy in the near term is the failure to pass the new NAFTA agreement, the USMCA. He also worries about an acceleration of retailer failures and the like due to tariffs. He notes a lot of positive things happening in the economy, nonetheless.