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Sourcing Guide & Market Intelligence

Tariffs to negatively impact the building and construction machinery sector

• The Trump Administration’s reciprocal tariffs, which apply general tariff rate increases to most countries the United States trades with, are set to take effect on August 7, after the administration finalized the national rates on August 1. As a result, leading sources of imported construction machinery face significantly higher tariff rates, including Japan (15.0%), Mexico (25.0%), South Korea (15.0%), the European Union (15.0%), the United Kingdom (10.0%), China (54.0%), and Canada (35.0%).
• The increase in tariffs on building and construction machinery imported from tariff-impacted countries will add to the price of imports, which are typically passed on to buyers in the form of higher prices. According to The Budget Lab at Yale, the additional tariffs on imports will increase overall prices for machinery and equipment by 13.3%.
• Additionally, the administration has already implemented 50.0% tariffs on all aluminum and steel imported into the United States, with the sole exception of imports from the United Kingdom. These tariffs will increase input costs even for construction machinery suppliers with domestic manufacturing operations.
• According to an April 2025 survey from Construction Equipment Magazine, around half of the respondents reported that the higher tariffs will increase operating costs by up to 15.0%, and more than half said they plan to pass those increases along to buyers.
• As many building and construction machinery brands source parts and components such as steel, engines, and electronics from foreign countries, higher tariff rates will put upward pressure on prices and lead to greater rental rates as manufacturers and dealers pass on costs. In addition, suppliers that source parts from tariff-affected regions may see supply chain disruptions as they seek alternative suppliers to mitigate tariff impacts.

Increased tariffs on copper imports take effect

• On August 1, the Trump administration implemented 50.0% tariffs on imported copper. Chile and Canada will be most impacted by these tariffs, as they account for a combined 87.0% of all copper imports in the United States.
• However, these tariffs are less sweeping than initially expected, only applying to semi-finished copper products, while excluding high-purity refined copper and copper input materials, such as ore and concentrate. As leading importers, such as Chile and Canada, have both high copper mining and refining capacities, they will likely avoid most of these tariffs by either exporting the copper in its unrefined form or refining the copper before exporting it to the United States
• These copper tariff exemptions limit the impact on the electronics and electrical equipment sectors because these applications require refined copper due to its optimal conductive properties.
• Thus, the prices of metal alloys that include copper, consumer products made from copper, tools, plumbing, corrosion-resistant alloys, and construction materials made from copper are forecast to rise by an average of 39.2%, according to the Yale Budget Lab.

Crude oil prices dip, but natural gas and fuel prices remain volatile in 2025

• Oil prices have been falling with the introduction of higher tariffs and the predicted decline in global demand. The OPEC+ group of countries also announced they would be unwinding production cuts and increasing their collective output target for May by 411,000 barrels per day.
• Trade wars, ongoing conflict between Hamas and Israel, and general unrest in the Middle East are causing uncertainty surrounding oil prices, which has led to volatility in prices. In the third week of May 2025, crude oil prices hit $63.67 per barrel, but volatility remains as geopolitical concerns remain.
• Natural gas prices rallied early in 2025 with colder-than-usual temperatures in the United States and high demand, topping out at $4.68/MMBtu in March. Prices have since fallen with the onset of trade wars and weakening demand projections to $3.64/MMBtu in the third week of May 2025.
• The national average of gasoline prices has been rising slightly due to refinery maintenance/outages and blending issues, hitting a national average of $3.15 per gallon in the third week of May 2025. However, gasoline futures have been volatile, falling due to fears of oversupply and deepening concerns about weakening demand with tariffs, but rising after trade deals.