The Trump Administration's tariffs have been in place for several weeks, generating fears for the global economy.

So could a trade war cost consumers more for the things they buy, as some economists have predicted?

"Absolutely, you're going to see higher prices passed on to consumers…almost immediately" Matt Gold, a former deputy assistant U.S. Trade Representative for North America under former President Barack Obama, told CNBC recently.

"A lot of goods are already warehoused that were imported months ago, so it takes a bit of time to catch up, but prices catch up pretty fast," he added.

Given that tariffs is a duty imposed by a government on goods imported from other countries, the costs are often passed along to consumers via high prices.