Hardware Podcasts

Tariffs and Trade: EMS & The Economist on Global Manufacturing's Future Amid Political Shifts

EMS@C-LEVEL · 5 Feb 2025 · 23m

What this episode covers

Shawn DuBravac, Chief Economist at the Electronics Industries Alliance (EIA), discusses the immediate impact of the Trump administration's aggressive tariff policies on global manufacturing and the EMS sector. He highlights a massive, panic-driven pull-forward of imports in December and January, with PCB order flows hitting the 99th percentile as companies rush to beat potential March 1 tariffs on Canada and Mexico. DuBravac warns that these tariffs will likely be inflationary across multiple sectors, including food and construction, while creating uncertainty that delays long-term capital investments in US manufacturing capacity. The conversation also covers CES 2025 trends, noting a strong shift toward autonomous vehicles and EVs, driven by companies like Waymo and BYD, alongside the broader integration of AI into hardware.

Most relevant to

early-stage companies

Topics

Mentioned

Companies
Electronics Industries Alliance, Waymo, BYD, Zeker
Also
PCB, EMS, CES, USMCA

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