Trump Tariffs Hurt U.S. Manufacturers

Tariffs at the core of Trump’s economic agenda. However, they have been a huge negative for Jay Allen, and his company, Allen Engineering Corp., maker of industrial equipment used to install, finish and pave concrete. Tariffs have raised the costs of engines, steel, gearboxes and clutches that Allen imports to build power trowels that sell for up to $100,000 each.

Allen’s company is one of the many being negatively affected. Allen ran his company at a loss in 2025 because of tariffs. He’s had to reduce payroll and hike prices by 8% to 10%, risking fewer sales. Despite Trump’s claims of increasing future manufacturing in the U.S., factories continue to shed workers, with 98,000 manufacturing jobs lost during Trump’s first full 12 months back in the White House.

“It takes time to get production online, and therefore it will be some more time before we fully materialize the benefits of the president’s policies,” said Pierre Yared, acting chairman of the White House Council of Economic Advisers. There is some truth to that; policies do take time for results to show up.

However, the way tariffs are being implemented makes me leery of any future increases beyond normal growth. Sure, some companies might expand by taking advantage of Trump’s tax breaks on investments in equipment and new buildings, but I don’t foresee many companies deciding to move factories, or build additional ones, in the United States.

Allen Engineering imports its 75-horsepower diesel engines from Germany. Building them in the United States would require a $20 million investment — a huge risk if the status of tariffs is unclear. Therein, lies the problem. Tariffs have been like a prize wheel at the county fair. They change from month to month, country to country, and rate by rate, all depending on Trump’s dictatorial mood of the day. There’s no semblance of consistency for companies to rely on.

“Are engine-makers going to spend that kind of money to move production from Germany to the U.S. when they don’t know what the landscape is going to be in three years?” Allen asked. As a former businessman, Trump should know that the answer for most will be, “No!”

About 98% of U.S. manufacturing establishments have fewer than 200 workers, according to Census Bureau data. They don’t have the necessary lobbying power of the big boys like Apple, General Motors, and Ford do. The Association of Equipment Manufacturers has advocated for tax credits to offset the expense of tariffs. They also called for tariff relief on raw materials, parts and components that cannot be acquired domestically at scale. The raw materials factor is something I have advocated since the tariff circus commenced.

Instead of working with allies to impose “penalties” for foreign manufacturers with abusive labor practices and unfair subsidies, Trump has chosen to act on his own whims. He’s not using tariffs to create an even playing field for U.S. manufacturers; he’s using tariffs to bully other nations into doing what he wants them to do. That’s not leadership. That’s a dictatorship. It’s not good for American manufacturers.

Source: Associated Press