WASHINGTON (AP) \u2014 Anxiety about costs and affordability is particularly high among Asian Americans, Pacific Islanders and Native Hawaiians, even at a moment when economic stress is widespread, according to a new poll.<\/p>\n
About half of Asian American and Pacific Islander adults said they wanted the government to prioritize addressing the high cost of living and inflation, according to the survey from AAPI Data<\/a> and The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research<\/a>, which was conducted in early December. In comparison, a December AP-NORC poll<\/a> found that about one-third of U.S. adults overall rated inflation and financial worries as the most pressing problems.<\/p>\n The findings indicate that this small but fast-growing group<\/a> is not persuaded by President Donald Trump’s attempts to tamp down worries about inflation<\/a> and defend his tariffs. Even when considering partisanship, AAPI Democrats and Independents \u2014 and even AAPI Republicans \u2014 are at least slightly more likely than those groups overall to mention inflation and costs. Concern about costs has risen among AAPI adults since last year, when about 4 in 10 AAPI adults said they wanted the government to focus on this issue.<\/p>\n Like Americans overall, AAPI adults have also become more focused on health care issues over the past year.<\/p>\n The poll is part of an ongoing project<\/a> exploring the views of Asian Americans, Native Hawaiians and Pacific Islanders, whose views are usually not highlighted in other surveys because of small sample sizes and lack of linguistic representation.<\/p>\n Jayakumar Natarajan, a 56-year-old manager for a major tech company living in the San Francisco Bay Area, is rethinking his goal of retiring at 60 because of climbing costs in basic goods and health care. He can afford to live the way he wants for now, but is considering delaying retirement or moving outside the U.S., where prices are lower.<\/p>\n The cost of health care is very much on his mind. \u201cI think it will really make a big difference in the way I think about retirement planning,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n AAPI adults are worried about rising costs<\/p>\n Inflation and affordability loom large for AAPI adults, even compared to other economic concerns, the survey found. About 2 in 10 AAPI adults mentioned housing costs or jobs and unemployment as priorities for the government to work on in the coming year, which was generally in line with Americans overall.<\/p>\n Balancing financial obligations has become especially challenging for people living in high-cost areas, where a steady salary may not cover a growing family. Kevin Tu, 32, and his wife recently reached two milestones \u2014 buying a new home outside of Seattle in Lynnwood, Washington, and expecting their first child. The couple works full time and Tu also has a math tutoring business, but he is still nervous about what will happen after the baby arrives.<\/p>\n Story Continues <\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m trying to figure out how to balance possible part-time day care with our mortgage, with cost of living,\u201d said Tu, who is Taiwanese American.<\/p>\n Black, Hispanic and AAPI adults were more apt than white adults to bring up unemployment, jobs and housing costs as priorities, the surveys found.<\/p>\n Part of what may explain AAPI adults’ increasing worry about everyday costs is the largest AAPI adult populations reside in states and major metropolitan cities with higher costs of living and higher rent, such as California and New York.<\/p>\n While tariffs have impacted American consumers across the board, they have a particularly strong effect on Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders who prefer certain imported goods such as food and clothing. Karthick Ramakrishnan, AAPI Data executive director and researcher at the University of California, Berkeley, recalls how last year, some AAPI shoppers were going to ethnic grocery stores and \u201cstockpiling\u201d ahead of tariffs kicking in.<\/p>\n \u201cWhen it comes to costs for Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders, it\u2019s just not cost of general market groceries but ethnic market groceries,\u201d Ramakrishnan said. \u201cIt’s something visible to them and potentially causing anxiety and worry.\u201d<\/p>\n Health care is also a priority for AAPI adults<\/p>\n Some 44% of AAPI adult also want the government to prioritize health care in the coming year. That’s not meaningfully different from among U.S. adults overall, emphasizing Americans’ renewed focus on the issue after a year of health care cuts.<\/p>\n