The Bible is easily the best-selling book in the U.S., and religious publishing houses are warning that President Trump's next proposed round of Chinese tariffs could result in a Bible shortage, making the Good Book more expensive for American consumers and hurting Christian evangelization efforts, The Associated Press reports.
"U.S. printers moved their Bible printing facilities abroad decades ago, leaving no substantial domestic manufacturing alternatives," Mark Schoenwald, president and CEO of HarperCollins Christian Publishing, told the U.S. Trade Representative recently. He added that HarperCollins, which owns the two largest U.S. Bible publishers, believes the Trump administration "never intended to impose a 'Bible Tax' on consumers and religious organizations." Combined, HarperCollins' Zondervan and Thomas Nelson commands 38 percent of the U.S. Bible market, and they incur about 75 percent of theirs Bible manufacturing costs in China.
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