How Trump's tariffs are forcing SA manufacturers to do more business outside of the U.S
The American president's reciprocal tariffs have caused havoc with global markets.
Donald Trump signs an executive order to start reciprocal tariffs on many other nations, effective at midnight, on 3 April 2025. Picture: Andrew Leyden/NurPhoto/NurPhoto via AFP
Stephen Grootes chats to Phillipa Rodseth, Executive director of the Manufacturing Circle, about how Trump's tariffs are driving South African manufacturers to seek alternative markets beyond the USA.
Listen to the interview in the audio player below.
U.S president Donald Trump has been toying with global markets by imposing tariffs on almost every single nation on earth.
The American president's reciprocal tariffs have caused havoc with global markets, sending the stock market into freefall and recording record losses in a single day's trade.
South Africa, China, Australia and Canada are just a few of the nations slapped with varying tariffs, forcing manufacturers in those countries to reconsider doing business with the U.S.
Trump has since announced a 90-day pause on tariffs being implemented, as well as a temporary exemption from reciprocal tariffs on consumer electronics.
Speaking to Stephen Grootes on The Money Show, Phillipa Rodseth, executive director of the Manufacturing Circle says the local manufacturing sector will go through major upheaval as a result of a shift in the global manufacturing.
"I think many parties are applying their minds, how to best navigate this space in what seems to be rapidly transpiring as a changing or new world order."
- Phillipa Rodseth, executive director - Manufacturing Circle
"We do export to other jurisdictions, other than the U.S. Europe or the E.U for example, or Asia also trading partners of ours. Where do our advantages sit, where are we strong in certain supply chains and simply switching from one to the other is also not so easily done."
- Phillipa Rodseth, executive director - Manufacturing Circle
"Uncertainty is not anything that industry is in favour of, or business in general. Just the inability to have visibility to plan forward makes things quite difficult."
- Phillipa Rodseth, executive director - Manufacturing Circle
Scroll to the top of the article to listen to the full interview.