Tariffs imposed by US President Donald Trump have led to a decrease in supplies and business activity of American manufacturers, some companies compare the situation to the 2020 crisis caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. This is stated in a report by the American Institute for Supply Management.
The export orders index monitored by the institute fell for the third consecutive time in May. It is at its lowest level since the pandemic; previously such low values were observed only during the global financial crisis of 2008-2009. The rate of decline in the index is also the fastest since the pandemic, said Susan Spence, head of the institute's business research committee.
“The Trump administration's tariffs alone have caused supply chain disruptions comparable to those seen during the COVID-19 pandemic,“ the report quoted one company executive as saying. Other manufacturers say uncertainty over the new tariffs is forcing businesses to take a wait-and-see approach.
According to the association's estimate, the U.S. manufacturing activity index fell 0.2% in May from the previous month to 48.5%. This means it also continues to decline for a third consecutive month. In April 2020, when the coronavirus pandemic began, the economic activity index was 41.5%.
On April 2, US President Donald Trump announced the introduction of tariffs on products from most countries in the world. This caused a collapse in global stock markets, the recovery from which took several weeks. Trump regularly changes his tariff policy depending on the progress of negotiations with trading partners. In addition, the uncertainty surrounding the tariffs is exacerbated by litigation: on May 28, the US Federal Court of International Trade declared some of the tariffs illegal, but the next day the appeals court restored them in its decision.