Even before any tariffs go into effect, they are throwing a wrench into Joe Campbell’s business.

Campbell, who runs Concord-based North Branch Construction, said he’s hearing from industry partners that some lumber mills aren’t accepting new orders. Some suppliers froze their inventories following the Trump administration’s announcement of sweeping tariffs on goods imported from Canada, Mexico and China, waiting to see how potential tariffs could impact costs.

Although they were initially scheduled to go into effect Tuesday, Canada and Mexico both struck last-minute agreements to pause the tariffs for 30 days.

Campbell said he wasn’t certain what share of his materials come from the affected countries, nor could he put a dollar amount on how much the tariffs might cost his business. But he has already amended some of his contracts to try and lock in pre-tariff prices and “share the risk” of the impending increase.

For now, he said, the greatest threat is the unknown.

“We’re sitting on the edge of our seats … It’s a waiting game at this point,” Campbell said. “As much as we as business owners try to be proactive for things like this, there’s a lot of unknowns.”

Campbell said the lumberyards he contracts with often source from Canada, and he gets other materials from Mexico and Canada, too. The 25% tax on those items means the cost could get passed down to North Branch and, in turn, its customers. Those increased costs and potential supply chain delays could slow down housing and other construction in New Hampshire.

Other New Hampshire business owners, too, said they’re unsure how to navigate President Trump’s tariffs on the U.S.’s three biggest trading partners. The White House explained the tariffs as a strategy to control U.S. borders and the entry of illegal immigrants and drugs flowing into the U.S. from neighboring countries.

Tim Sink, the president of the Greater Concord Chamber of Commerce, said local businesses are holding their breath to see how the tariffs might impact them. For now, he’s taking a “wait and see” approach and hoping the border control issues cited by the Trump administration are resolved soon.

“I don’t have a magic wand to make this go away or to fix the problems,” Sink said. “We’re kind of in uncharted territory right now, so that’s why I keep coming back to ‘let’s not be too knee-jerk about this’.”

Locally, Sink said he anticipates New Hampshire’s energy and manufacturing economies could get hit. So could transportation.

Jim Jalbert, who owns a Portsmouth-based bus company that runs from the Seacoast down to Boston and New York City, said the tariffs could cost him a million dollars this year.

About 70% of motor coach buses in the U.S. are from a select few manufacturers in Canada, he said. His business, C&J Limousines, is no different. He’s already ordered seven new buses, which won’t cross the border until later this year.

The retail price of each one is roughly $650,000, he said. The 25% tariff would bring that to well over $800,000. With seven buses on the way, Jalbert’s not sure how he’ll absorb those costs.

“How do you justify that type of expense?” Jalbert said. “How do you pass it on? You can’t pass it on to the consumer, but you’re responsible to pay your employees a livable wage. You’re responsible to keep your fleet modern and safe. You’re responsible to provide good service.”

C&J Limousines also sources some of its fuel from Canada. Energy products from the U.S.’s neighbors to the north will be taxed at 10%, which Jalbert said will pile on more expenses for his company.

Tariffs will also impact consumers, which U.S. Sen. Jeanne Shaheen said is her biggest concern. She’s already heard that Irving Oil could raise rates on gasoline and fuel for home heating.

Shaheen and the rest of New Hampshire’s congressional delegation sent a letter to the Trump administration last week urging the president to reconsider the tariffs.

Home heating oil is the state’s largest import from Canada, and they argued that the tariffs could jack up heating costs by more than $375 per winter for New Hampshire homes.

“For the more than 350,000 households in New Hampshire who rely on heating oil, propane and wood to keep their homes warm and comfortable, adding these costs would be particularly cruel in the middle of a winter that has seen recent temperatures reach 20 below zero,” they said in the letter.

With other impacts on housing, gas and groceries, the members of Congress estimated that the tariffs on Canada and Mexico could cost middle-class households $1,100 more each year.

“That’s going to have a direct impact on people,” Shaheen told the Monitor during an unrelated visit to the New Future’s office in Concord.

Charlotte Matherly is the statehouse reporter for the Concord Monitor and Monadnock Ledger-Transcript in partnership with Report for America. Follow her on X at @charmatherly, subscribe to her Capital Beat newsletter and send her an email at cmatherly@cmonitor.com.