Owners and developers of commercial construction projects may hesitate to move forward with new work after President Donald Trump levied fresh tariffs on more than 180 countries, according to industry sources. On Wednesday, Trump announced a 10% baseline tariff for all U.S. trading partners with additional reciprocal tariffs for select nations, such as another 34% on Chinese imports and 20% on European Union imports. Many key construction materials, such as steel, aluminum, lumber and copper, will be exempted from these reciprocal tariffs, according to a White House release. Price increases are expected, but they will take time to be worked into the system. Contractors tend to source products like concrete, gypsum and other raw materials domestically, so those are less likely to be impacted, said Tim Jed, supply chain leader at DPR Construction. That jump in costs mixed with uncertainty on how markets will react to the new trade policy will likely start to slow construction investment activity, said Jeannine Cataldi, associate director of global construction at S&P Global Market Intelligence. That will have an impact on nonresidential construction, specifically privately funded projects.
https://www.constructiondive.com/news/trump-tariffs-construction-risk-liberation-day/744334/